FriendStory: Heroes
by Katekyo1412
Summary: Fighting the Black Mage gets boring and horrible after a while, not the mention the stress. So when a portal opens up to a brand new world, the Heroes jump at the chance to go in. But then again, anywhere with them never ends peacefully. My take on how things would go if all the Heroes entered Shinsoo International High.
1. Prologue Part 1

Hello! So recently, FriendStory came to MapleSea over the holidays, and I played through it. It was really really fun, and I do hope a new story comes out soon. But anyway, I was thinking. What if the Heroes were were the ones who went in? What if no one knew but these six people? My take on what would happen. Some stuff may not happen according to the gameplay style itself, but you get the idea.

I'm open to suggestions, because in between each Story, I might put in a complete new plotline, which may or may not lead to mayhem. Other than that, please enjoy the story, and reviews are much appreciated! Thank you!

Maplestory © Nexon, not mine, if not, LumiPhan would have been canon ages ago.

* * *

It wasn't everyday he was called in for a quest by Grendel the Really Old. In fact, it was never, other than looking into the Onyx Dragons. But Evan was grateful to the old man for helping him, so he didn't mind popping by to do what he can to ease the old man's mind. When he entered the large library in Ellinia, the man smiled at him. "Evan! It is good to see you again. How have you been under the tutorship of the rest of the heroes?"

Evan smiled at the old man, patting Mir on the head. "It has been... eventful, sir. The knowledge they possess is really vast. Luminous teaches me how to hone my magic, though under the eye of Phantom in case he loses control. Phantom teaches me about the magic and how it works, well, in theory. Aran takes me and Mercedes for combat training, though Phantom doesn't appreciate his home being destroyed." He replied truthfully. Evan had been living on the Lumiere as of the moment, along with Phantom. Luminous did pop by often, though, only if Evan requested him to do so. And even then, Phantom insisted on being there. Mainly to watch him, but Phantom never passed up a chance to tease Luminous. But never mind that. Why did Grendel call him for?

He looked up at Grendel, puzzled, while the oldan chuckled. "Nothing about Dragons this time, Evan. In fact, I do believe you might enjoy this. After all, your own youth was stolen in order for you to train your abilities."

Evan immediately raised his hands, denying vehemently about losing his youth, that he was happy to do such a thing. If it weren't for this, he would still be a farm boy. Grendel laughed, a deep rich laugh for an old man. He shook his head. "Come now, Evan. I'll transport you there."

The moment he blinked, Evan and Grendel were in a house. Evan rubbed his eyes, recognizing the inside as the interior of a mushroom house in Henesys. He looked around, before noticing an extremely scared young man clad in a sweater and scarf. Grendel sighed deeply, before introducing the both of them. "Evan, this is one of my apprentice, Elwin. He is the Manipulator of Portals. I didn't think he would pull open a portal to an alternate universe. Elwin, please meet Evan, one of the Heroes." Evan smiled, while Mir nudged Elwin, who appeared fascinated at the appearance of the dragon. Evan cleared his throat to capture Elwin's attention, before asking his questions.

"Uh, Mr. Elwin, what happened?"

"Elwin would do, Evan. Well, I... might have opened a portal to an alternate universe, causing this... this person from there to enter, while our dark magic enters their universe. I don't know how, but traces of our world is entering their world. I can't close the portal just yet, not until he goes in. You see that person outside over there? Yeah. I was.. hoping that Grendel would not appear before help came and allowed me to close the portal, but I guess not." Elwin fiddled with his scarf nervously. Evan nodded, before smiling apologetically. Had it been him, Evan would have just trembled in the corner. Mir nuzzled the man, and the door flew open.

"Tch, that's why I'm saying, just toss him in and be done with it! Just because he likes the world doesn't mean he- oh, Evan, what are you doing here?"

In the doorway stood the rest of the Heroes.

Evan blinked again, while Mir tilted his head. "Master, what are they doing here? I thought this was a quest from Grendel?" Evan shrugged. Luminous merely shook his head and opened his mouth to explain when Phantom butted in. As he spoke, a visible vein appeared on Luminous' head. Aran gave him a pat on the back to calm him down. According to Phantom, he and Luminous had been investigating a sudden magic disruption. Well, Luminous had been, while Phantom merely tagged along just in case it was the Black Mage wanting to absorb Luminous ("For the last time, stupid thief, I do not require your protection nor your companionship!"). Mercedes and Aran had came to Henesys to meet Athena Pierce, but was drawn by the magic disruption as well. Shade had been shopping in Henesys, but upon seeing the rest entering the house, followed oit of curiosity. All five of them came in, and was told about the situation by Elwin. Then, they tried to get the person to go back, but to no avail. Force was prohibited because Elwin didn't want to hurt the other person.

They sighed, before Elwin spoke up. "I have an idea, but I'm not sure if it would work. One of you will have to go in as the transfer student."

The Heroes gaped at him, before they started to discuss animatedly. A new world to explore, a break away from the Black Mage. It seemed alright, and even then, they were preventing the Black Mage's influence in the other world. But who would go in?

Phantom spoke first, as always. "Well, a new world might have new jewels to pick up along the way, as well as more beautiful items alongside." Luminous growled at him.

"That's all you can think about, petty thief? Think of others for once, you stealing their jewels, and leaving the magic influence behind? Only you would do such a thing." Mercedes sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Of course it's not only that. Think of the plants and animals there. The influence of the Black Mage is still around, they might corrupt the flora there, leading the monsters appearing."

"It's an entire new world! Plus, you can't possibly deny any of us the chance to explore it! And if we block the Black Mage's plans, that would result in him growing weaker, right?!"

The unspoken demand that they each enter was clear in the air to Evan. He sighed and rubbed his head. "Since all of us have a goal there, w-why don't we all go in?" He spoke up over the noise, which immediately stopped. The five Heroes stared at him, before Phantom cried out. "I have to be stuck with Stuffy Pants in another world again?!" Luminous turned and grabbed Phantom by the collar, his red eye flaring up. Evan quickly pushed the two apart, before sighing. How did the Dragon Master of the past deal with this? Shade sighed and patted Evan on the back. Evan smiled gratefully at him. Shade's real name was Eunwol, but no one called him by that name anymore.

"If that's the case, that's where I come in."

A female voice rang loud and clear. Grendel beckoned in the woman, who stood over all of them. "My name is Lily, and I'm the master of Manipulation. I can get all of you in in one piece. I studied alongside Elwin, who clearly made another blunder. One condition. All of you have to listen to what we say, or the fate of both worlds would be in jeopardy." Another student of Grendel? Oh. Lily.

"Anyway, here, takes these." Elwin hurriedly pushed a couple of devices into their hands. "Handphones. For contacting us. My contact is already in it, as well as Lily's. So go, hurry! School is about to start!"

The Heroes immediately rushed into the closet, squeezing through the hole. Eager to get away from the pressure of the Black Mage, the Heroes escapes into another world, far different from their own.


	2. Prologue Part 2

Hello again for Chapter 2! Well, part 2 of Prologue. But anyway! Ijust want to correct my mistake a little. Elwin is a barrier master, not a portal master. I apologize for this, my mistake. But critique is appreciated, so don't hesitate to point out any mistakes I have made.

That said, onwards!

Maplestory©Nexon

* * *

They scrambled in, pausing and gazing around the new world. Vehicles zoomed across the road, while people stood around, waiting for who knows what. Smells drifted through the air, while the Heroes stood dumbfounded in the area. Sounds unlike any other were heard, the beeping and ringing of their phones going unnoticed. Until they realize their pockets were ringing. Evan fumbled to get his... phone out and pressed to his ear, just as he had seen others do. But all he could hear was ringing. Looking at the screen again, he noticed Elwin's image on it and a green icon. He tapped it, and Elwin's voice came out.

"Hello? Hello? Heroes? Oh good, you answered. Anyway, you guys would need to get uniforms if you are going to go to school. So cross that little bridge over there and head to Big Headward's. Tell him you guys are transfers and he'll give you free uniforms. Now hurry, the bell is almost going to ring! Oh yeah, you all would be separated in class later. But right now, clothes! Go get them first." The call shut off, and Evan blinked in surprise. Uniforms? Mir snorted, and Evan looked down to see a dog.

They said no dragons, so I got turned into a dog. A black puppy. Hmph.

Evan stifled a laugh and the Heroes began their trek over the bridge. Evan could see the sparkle in his senior's eyes, the way they took in all the new items. Aran had gone straight to a bread shop and stared until Mercedes dragged her away. Phantom appeared to be at ease, a little miffed at the lack of gems, while Luminous was scribbling furiously into a book. Probably his research on the world. Evan could feel the stares of everyone, and he turned to see that yes, they all stood out. Like a sore thumb.

Evan started to hurry the Heroes, when they finally got over, who else but Big Headward greeted them? The Heroes seemed a bit shocked. The man in the store spotted them ans huffed. "What is it? A bunch of cosplayers? Shoo now, I won't make your clothes."

Mercedes cleared her throat. "Ahh, Mr. Headward. We are transfer students. We need... uniforms." Headward seem to realize who he was talking to, and he laughed. "Really? I would have thought otherwise! But I have too little machines to make you proper ones, as you can see! How about this, take this uniform. It goes over your outfit, and you can wear it underneath."

Headward started to measure everyone, before tossing some clothes over. Everyone dashes into the changing room, returning clad in their school uniform. Sweater, shirt and tie for the boys, though Phantom opted to toss away the tie and left his collar open. Luminous buttoned up with the tie, while Shade chose to not wear the sweater and instead chose to wear the blazer with a tie. Evan didn't want to where anything ontop, so he stuck to the shirt only. The girls were easier, with Mercedes putting on the blazer and a tie, while Aran threw on the blouse and put on the skirt. She tied the jacket around her waist.

"These are kinda short. How am I suppose to fight in them?" Aran was complaining, with Big Headward shaking his head disapprovingly. Mercedes twirled around a little, appearing to be satisfied. The boys were fine with the outfit, and they trooped out of the shop.

Another phone call came, and this time, Shade answered it. All the Heroes crammed near the phone to listen to Elwin, which looked quite comical when they each fought over who listened to it. In the end, Shade listened while the others squabbled. He put down the phone and turned around. "We need to hide our weapons. Especially Maha and your staffs. Phantom, we need your illusions."

Phantom snorted and brought out his cards. They flew and landed on everyone's weapon but his cane, and they slowly disappeared. "Illusion. Don't let anyone touch them, or they would appear again." He stared at Luminous, smirking. Luminous glared and slotted his weapon on his back, and entered the school. According to Elwin, or so Shade said, they had to go to the Teacher's office first. The Heroes moved to the front gate, to see... Cygnus?! Everyone froze. What was the Empress doing here? She seemed to be speaking to a man about a cloth in the trees. Phantom smirked and tilted his hat. Running over to the tree, he jumped up and climbed it with ease, picking JP the cloth and landing on the floor.

"Your handkerchief, my lady." He bowed down and waved his hand with the handkerchief at Cygnus. The girl smiled and giggled, taking the handkerchief. "Thank you. You seem to be really fit for someone your age." Phantom laughed.

"No, no. This is nothing. After all, what do you expect from one of the Heroes, and me no less?" Cygnus blinked at him in confusion, before laughing it off. "Very well, hero. I guess it keeps you fit. Now, how should I reward you? I have learnt that no good deed should go unrewarded."

Phantom opened his mouth to ask for Meso, when Luminous bopped him on the head from behind. "No reward required for this guy." Phantom winced and glared.

"Nothing for me, my lady. However, someone's white butt is asking for a beating..." the two glared at each other, leading Evan to push in between the two. Cygnus laughed a little, before drawing out her phone.

"Please, allow me to exchange phone numbers with you. I would like to be friends with you." Before anyone could say anything, everyone's phone number was inputted into Cygnus' phone and her number in theirs. She bid them farewell and hurries into the school. Dumbfounded, the Heroes immediately glanced at the contact list. They actually got Cygnus' number. Not that they thought it meant anything, but they could contact the Empress. Mercedes huffed. "Now isn't the time to be doing this. Come on, class is starting." Someone cleared their throat behind, and everyone turned to stare at the chauffeur.

"Look. I don't want you people hanging around Ms. Cygnus. I know your type, to hang around the rich and backstab them later. I forbid you for going near her, do you understand?" The chauffeur was trying to look intimidating, but it wasn't working.

Luminous barked a short laughter. "With this idiot around, you simply must wonder how people don't hate the rich." Phantom glared at him, before he used his cane to trip Luminous, darting into school, laughing. Luminous chased after him, with Aran yelling at them to stop while running after the both of them. Mercedes, Shade and Evan sighed, before they moved into the school, leaving the ignored chauffeur behind, who was clearly angry at their rudeness.

It turned out the Heroes were separates among the three classes. Evan was in the first year, Mercedes and Aran in the third, while the boys were in the second. They went on their separate ways, though, Evan was glad he was with Chief Stan's counterpart. The second years got a weird looking teacher, while the third years got... Akarium. It was amusing to see the Aran attempting to run from him.

* * *

In the First Year Classroom, Stan introduced Evan. Evan smiled meekly, a little nervous. "H-hello. My name is Evan. This is Mir. He's.. my dog." Stan nodded. Evan had been 'given' a special privilege to bring a dog in to combat his 'anxiety issues'. Lucky for him, Lily placed that in. The students stared at him, before one raised their hand. "What's your hobby, Evan?"

"H-hobby? Uhm... Combat Training? A-and reading about dragons! Researching them!" Evan announced. Stan stared at him a little, before sighing. "Back to seat, Evan."

The day passes by in a flash with Evan occasionally staring confusedly at his books. What was all this? After class, as he made a move to exit, someone called him. Evan looked up to see Francis. Francis?! Evan jolted in his seat and immediately grabbed Mir. Francis walked over and smiled the same creepy smile.

"Have we met before? I feel like we have. Maybe the forces of evil brought us together for a reason. Come now, we wouldn't want to ignore the evil destiny we share, don't we? Kuhuhuhu... and you must be a fanatic as well, to go for Combat Training. We 'otakus' gotta stick together. Kuhuhuhu, have my number." Evan nodded hurriedly. He was a little creeped out, but this Francis didn't seem to be too bad... what's an Otaku, though? As he inputted in Francis number, the two talked, with Evan relaxing by the minute. Francis did seem like a nice person. Maybe, if Francis wasn't under the Black Mage, Evan could have been friends with him. He did seem to be a nice person, though a little creepy. "You know, I took a picture of the dark spirits entering the world. I bet its because of them you are here."

As Evan moved to exit the room, someone else stopped him. A large thickedlipped person, bigger than Evan. He looked up at the person, whose name he vaguely remembered as The Fist. He smiled at Fist, wondering what he wanted.

"Hey you. I don't know why, but since you transferred here, I think it's destiny. You know what? I'll make you my right hand man. And anyone under me doesn't talk to weirdos like Puppet man, so don't you dare talk to him again."

Evan blinked at him. Oh. Francis. He frowned disapprovingly. Somehow he didn't like how Bully talked. Evan shook his head. "That's rude! Francis is pretty nice, and I don't see how playing with puppets make him any lesser than a normal person. I like him as a person."

Bully appeared mad, and he immediately trusted a finger into Evan's face, whom had backed off a little the moment a finger came. "RUDE! How dare you talk back to me! Meet me in the backyard of the school!" He stormed off after that, and Evan watched him go. What was going on? He heard a gulp, and he turned to see Francis shivering a little.

"Oh no, I'm sorry. I think I caused you to be picked on. He's been picking on me since he transferred in, and he's targeting to you now. I'm worried for you; I'm used to him, so I can take at least 3 punches. You look like you would faint after one." Francis gulped. Evan stared at him, before looking out, worried. What was he going to do?

* * *

Back with the second years, it was... amusing to say the least. The males were forced along with a teacher that looked vaguely familiar. They had been trying to guess what his name was, when Shade tapped him on the shoulder. "Uh, sir? Would it be possible for us to know who our homeroom teacher is?"

The gruff man turned around, staring at then straight in the eye, before sighing deeply. His reddish hair seemed to stick out in all directions, and Luminous had likened it to a lion's mane. He looked extremely tired, for some reason, but yet, looked ready for the day's activity. He ran a hand through his messy hair, before nodding.

"Von Leon. Most people call me Mr. Leon, since Mr. Von Leon is a mouthful. Now come along." He turned and strode into class, leaving the quivering mess of boys outside. Von Leon was their homeroom teacher?! They hadn't seen him for so long, so it was no wonder they didn't recognize him. But Von Leon?! Audible gulps could be heard from the trio, before they shuffled into class. They stood side by side, a little tense. Shade kept fidgeting, while Luminous stood stock still. Phantom appeared relaxed, leaning on his cane with a smirk on his face. But the other two knew he was feeling equally nervous. After all, Phantom never leaned on his cane unless his legs are jelly.

Von Leon walked from the teacher's desk and gestured to the three of them. "Transfer students. Introduce yourselves. Get a seat. We have work to do." The three nodded quickly, and started to nudge one another to introduce themselves first. Not working. Luminous and Phantom were glaring, and Shade was struggling to get their attention. One loud cough for Von Leon, and immediately the boys stopped. Being unable to use their magic, the Heroes never felt more vulnerable. It was hard enough trying to remind themselves that this wasn't the Von Leon they knew. Taking a deep breath, Phantom took a step forward. His trademark brilliant smile on his face, he introduced himself.

"Ah, it is my pleasure to be in your class. My name is Phantom. To be in this class of beautiful roses, is a privilege for people like me." Luminous felt an urge to poke him in the back, but he wisely held back. Phantom would just have to dig his own grave. The silent chirping of the birds outside seemed to register in Phantom's mind, and he shuffled back a little, his smile on his face. He could see the telltale signs of swooning, so his introduction worked. Somewhat.

Luminous was next, and he coughed a little. "M-my name is Luminous." Simple. Nothing to extravagant. He turned to Shade, who appeared to be ashen white. Phantom and Luminous looked at him strangely. He jerked his head at the class, and the two idiots turned to see what he was looking at. They took a double take, Phantom gripping his cane a little harder while Luminous felt his mouth drop open. In the seats, sat Mihile. Eckhart. Oz. Hawkeye. Cassandra. Ms. Appropriation. ORCHID. They gulped. Two Black Wings Commanders. Shade shook his head. His turn. "Eunwol. That's my name." The students nodded, and Von Leon seemed to smile. Creepy as it is, the boys struggled not to show any expression. "Are there any questions for them?"

Hawkeye, sitting right at the front, raised his hand. "What's your hobby?"

The Heroes looked at him blankly. Hobby... oh! Shade fidgeted a bit, before answering for the three of them. "Combat practice. I mean, that's what we do mostly. I'm not sure, but if that's not it, then probably researching for Luminous, hunting and stealing rare jewels for Phantom, and... cooking. For me." The incredulous looks on everyone's face gave more than enough reason for Shade to shrink and hide behind Luminous. Von Leon frowned, before turning to the class. "Welcome them. Now, get to your seats." The three immediately scrambled for their seats. Shade was sitting behind Phantom, at the very back, next to Mihile. Luminous was seating next to Phantom. It wasn't sure if Phantom did this on purpose, but he had taken a seat next to Eckhart. The three shuffled in their seats, uncomfortable with sitting for long periods of time. In between lessons, the three kept huddling together.

The three had just been discussing the new fangled knowledge of Physics when they heard a cough. And a loud "Hi!" They turned to face Hawkeye, along with Eckhart and Mihile.

"So, nice to meetcha! I'm Hawkeye. We are classmates for this year!" An easy grin slid onto his face, and the other three immediately relaxed. He was similar to the Striker Cygnus Knight back home. Phantom forced a smile. The Heroes weren't exactly in good terms with the Cygnus Knights. Then again, the only time they did interact was during the Maple Alliance meetings. And even then, the Heroes, well, only Mercedes and Aran took an active role in battle plans. Phantom only provided information, while Luminous preferred inputting his opinion when he saw fit. Shade... was forgotten. Evan had still been learning, so not much could be said to the Commanders.

As of now, acting smooth was a little... hard, to say the least. They weren't expecting the Commanders' counterparts. Hawkeye, who took the silence as approval, continued on.

"So this is Mihile and this is Eckhart. Oh, come on, smile a little!"

"Maybe you are overwhelming them, Hawkeye."

"Hmm, really? They don't look too bad, Mihile. Lighten up!"

Eckhart remained silent, which the males were grateful for. Without his mask, the Heroes could see his face. And that was rather uncomfortable, for the Cygnus Knight always hid his face, even during meetings. It was strange to see his face for once.

"...Have we met before?"

Maybe they took Eckhart's silence for granted. Shade immediately shook his head, while Luminous looked away. Phantom nodded his head once, before realizing his mistake and shaking it vigorously.

"...Oh. I see."

"I think you are creeping them out, Eckhart."

"Perhaps your own loud behavior set them on the edge."

"Guys, let's stop. Akarium is here. I hope you have done your homework, Hawkeye."

"Oh snap! Mihile, lend me your homework!"

The boys scurried away, and the Heroes slumped in their chair. Maybe pretending was going to be a harder quest to do than they thought.

* * *

The third years weren't as eventful. Akarium proved to be a better teacher than a monk, at least. He had brought them in and introduced Mercedes and Aran for them, knowing how awkward it must be for new students to feel comfortable. Mercedes curtseyed out of habit, while Aran merely grinned. What they weren't expecting was Irina and Ephenia.

"Mercedes, there's an Ephenia here! Not to mention Irina!"

"Calm down, Aran. Remember, this is not our world. Therefore, Ephenia is not the Queen of Fairies, neither is Irina the Windbreaker we know. Shush now, class is starting."

Aran ended up falling asleep.

After class, just as they were about to leave, Irina came.

"Hey. Mercedes, Aran, nice to meet you. I'm Irina. Say, do you want to go out? Since you are a transfer student, I could show you around." Mercedes shook her head, smiling kindly. She was taking the assignment well, unlike Aran, who had made a sound similar to "hnnnnngh!" when Irina approached.

"It is most appreciated, but we have something to do after... school today. Maybe another time, Irina." Smiling, Mercedes was about to run when Irina called out again.

"Okay then, but I want to ask, have we met before? You feel familiar... Oh, wait. Maybe... Say, Mercedes. Do you like archery? If you like, you could join the archery club."

Mercedes' eyes shone, and she took a step forward to agree, to take kn the challenge, when Aran, in the rudest possible way, covered her mouth.

"Ahhhhhhhh, look at the time! We gotta go, seeya!" With that, Aran dragged Mercedes down the stairs, leaving Irina hanging.

* * *

The 6 Heroes met up outside the first floor. Evan looked rather worried, while Shade, Luminous and Phantom appeared uncomfortable. Mercedes seemed fine while Aran was pouting.

"Okay, so maybe we didn't suspect the Cygnus Knights to be here. So now what? Do we go back or...?" Aran wanted to return to the Maple World, they did have yet to complete their combat practice as a team. The males nodded quickly, not wanting to run into the others for the rest of the day. Mercedes agreed as well, but Evan...

"I have to meet this guy for something... a fight, I think."

"A fight?!" Luminous and Phantom immediately yelled. Phantom's smile turned plastic, Luminous' red eye flared up. Shade sighed and shook his head, gripping their shoulders.

"Let him explain. Don't overreact." His grip tightened, and the two froze. No magic. Right.

Evan explained what had happened to the rest as fast as possible, unsure if Bully was still there. Aran clapped him on the back, causing Evan to fall forward slightly.

"I think you can stand him, Evan. Don't you worry! Plus, Magic Guard is always on now, right? So all you gotta do is to use your staff and bonk him on the head!" Evan laughed nervously, and shook his head. He didn't want to hurt Bully no matter what, but if he had to escape, he might have to do such a thing. Gulping, he made his way to thr backyard, Aran and Mercedes wishing him luck, while the males squabble over following him. In the end, the remaining Heroes peeked into the backyard to watch.

Evan approached the Bully, who started to yell at him for looking down on him.

"So you think you are stronger? I'm going to take over the school, and I will make an example out of you!"

"Uh, I'm sorry, but..."

A strange voice permeated the backyard, causing Mir to stiffen. An evil laugh, and suddenly, Bully fell down, standing in his place, stood a large monster. Evan let out a whimper, as Mir reverted back to his original shape. The rest of the Heroes hurried after him, all of them drawing their weapons.

"Was not expecting that... really, what were we expecting? Mushrooms?" Luminous grumbled.

"No, but it's powerful! Take it out!"

Mercedes called out, assuming the role of leadership. The others rolled their eyes, and began their assault.

" _Spectral Light!_ "

" _Spirit Trap! Shockwave Punch!_ "

" _Blason_! "

" _Combo Fenrir!_ "

" _Piercing Storm!_ "

" _Blaze!_ "

Shade immobilized the Monster, giving the others a chance to throw in their attacks. As they launched attacks after attacks at the Monster, they were unaware of the light show they were showing off. The Monster, once freed from Shade's trap, roared and charged at the Heroes. Phantom barely dodged, while Luminous and Evan lost a little of their Mana. Shade and Aran lost their health, but kept throwing attacks left and right. Mercedes jumped out of the way in time. They had to clear this as soon as possible. Nodding, the Heroes assumed a formation. Shade and Aran launched a volley of physical attacks, before they jumped away and the two mages launched their long ranged ones. The Monster was stunned, for a little, and Mercedes aimed her bowguns. Phantom threw out his cards, creating an explosion and weakening the Monster's defense. Mercedes launched a volley of arrows, and the Monster cried out in pain. It swirled into a small black ball, before disappearing, and the Heroes dropped onto the ground.

It wasn't a difficult battle, but the Heroes knew that this, this monster was far stronger than anything they have fought. Taking a deep breath, Phantom activated his Impeccable Memory and healed everyone. A couple of scraps here and there, but nothing too badly damaged.

"What was that? Never seen such a monster before. Did we fight such a thing back then?" Aran piped up, leaning heavily on Maha as she consumed a Mana Elixir. Mercedes shook her head. It was unlike anyone had ever seen. Evan sighed.

"I guess.. it's my fault? I'm sorry. I didn't know that such a monster was here. I must have provoked it. That said, Bully seems fine, just fainted. I wonder what happened?"

The others opened their mouths to tell Evan to not blame himself, when the phone rang. They each stared at one another, before Aran yanked out her phone. Clicking it on, she yelled at it for a bit.

"Hello? Hello?! Seems like Elwin. He doesn't seem to answer though."

Mercedes sighed and pressed the speaker button. Elwin's voice could be heard. "Hello? I told you guys not to use your magic! What's the big idea! Oh no, Lily looks so mad."

"There was this weird monster here! If we didn't use our magic, we would have died!" Aran snorted.

"Monster? Hurry back right now then! Oh no, Grendel is going to kill me..."

The Heroes exchanged glances, before running off back to the dorm. They could almost hear the scolding from Grendel, and to be honest, no one wanted to hear his old-man-scolding style. As they hurried back, the Heroes knew, they couldn't possibly stay away now.

Meanwhile, in the reading room, a book snapped shut. The reader frowned and got up.

"Transfer students... I wonder..."


	3. Chapter 1

Hello again! Hasn't really been that long, huh? Anyway, the story starts officially from here! Thank you to my beta reader for helping me clear some mistakes up! And thank you to the reviews that came in! Enjoy Chapter 1, Cygnus and the Transfer Student!

Maplestory © Nexon

P.S. I'm using MapleStory SEA, so yes, there really is a thicklipped dude. Apparently in GMS there isn't any lips to be seen. If there is something you want to ask about, feel free t9 drop me a PM!

* * *

"...And you still have the audacity to use your magic, despite previous warnings! And to not consider your surroundings, to simply use them like that, do you think that Lily can wipe everything? Are you going to rely on Lily to mop up your mistakes? You are Heroes, for Transcendents' sake! No matter how irresponsible you may be here in the Maple World, I don't care for whatever reason, but you all are much more intelligent than an average Adventurer! I expected better from all of you, to at least exercise caution and not to run into battle without a thought for any unexpected spectators and casualties. If that child had awoken in the middle of the battle, how would you explain his injuries?" Grendel's blood pressure skyrocketed through the roof.

They got a very harsh scolding from Grendel, to say the least. But when Elwin heard that there were monsters in the other world, he fell quiet.

"Maybe the evil energy from here has entered and manifested in the other dimension. Perhaps it would be better if you stay there for a while and collect the energy. We can't close the barrier unless all the energy has been removed." With that, the Heroes were told to return to the same area at the same time tomorrow. Yawning, the Heroes made their way back to their respective homes.

None of the Heroes had a habit of being late, other than Phantom, who arrived just on the dot. Already dressed in their school uniform, of which Phantom had switched his for silk, they entered the closet. Six Heroes made their way out of the dorm, smelling the scent of food all round.

"I wonder what's so good here." Aran sniffed the air, her mouth watering. Mercedes sighed and patted Aran on the back.

"Come on now, we have full health. Let's hurry to school, we do not want to be late," she chided. They hurried to school, ignoring the scent of eggs and bacon. The moment they stepped outside, the same ringtone came again. Mercedes immediately picked up her phone, staring at the icon.

"Hello, Cygnus. What is it?" She glanced at the rest, gesturing them to come closer. "Oh? Yes, they all are. Mhmm, alright. We will see you there." She closed the phone and turned to her friends.

"Cygnus asked us to meet her in her office on the first floor. She wants to give us a tour around later after school. We mustn't keep her waiting." The rest nodded, turning to the road. They hurried across the bridge and arrived in school. They made their way to the office at the back of the first floor.

Evan knocked on the door, peeking in. Cygnus was sitting in the room. She smiled and beckoned them in. The Heroes strode in, and hesitated.

Evan smiled shyly at Cygnus. "E- Cygnus, what is it? Where's the p-principal?"

Cygnus shook her head. "I take care of the administrative matters here in school, as part of a job experience. I guess you could say I'm the principal here. But please, I am also a student here, so don't treat me otherwise," she laughed, that same melodious laugh that the Heroes were familiar with. "Oh yes, here. As transfer students, I require you to fill out a form and sign it."

She picked up a small stack of papers on the table and distributed them out. The Heroes looked at the forms, frowning. Huh. Their names were written on it, and a couple of lines. Above the lines it asked them to fill in their motto before signing it. They scratched their head, before each Hero took a pen from the desk and started to scribble on it.

Mercedes paused, before scribbling down her motto. "To never give up in the face of danger, despite the odds."

Evan frowned and immediately wrote, "To work harder and be worthy of succeeding the previous Dragon Master person of my position."

Aran scribbled down something, but to Cygnus, it was… rather illegible. She couldn't read a single word. But Aran insisted her motto was there, so Cygnus accepted it nonetheless.

Shade had merely scribbled down three words before signing it. "Forget me not," It was written in his neat handwriting. Cygnus wondered what had happened in Shade's past, but chose not to press on it.

Phantom had written down, in his curly handwriting, "The world she believed in isn't dead yet." He presented it to Cygnus with a bow, smiling slightly. Cygnus smiled back, though she wondered, why such strange wording?

Luminous had returned her a blank piece of paper. Staring at it, she shook her head. Luminous scowled and scratched his head, unsure of what to write. Finally, he scribbled down something after much thought. It read: "What do you want me to say?" Much thought indeed.

Cygnus didn't want to ask if they were serious, so she kept the papers and smiled. The Heroes smiled back. Cygnus waved a hand to the door, still smiling. "The head teacher is also looking for you. Please, proceed to the staff room next door. And do have a good day!" Her welcoming hospitality not faltering, she mused, "I wonder.. which one of you is the Fateful…" and she paused, knowing the 'transfer students' were looking at her. "Never mind!"

And so they exited the room, a little weirded out by her words. They entered the staff room only to meet up with… Stan. It was almost as if he was the Chief they knew, always mad about something. Well, he certainly was mad at something. Them.

"I heard you were fighting yesterday, Evan. What makes you think you can do that in a school like this? You aren't above the law, and you most certainly are not above anyone else here! To think, to pick a fight on the first day of school, are you trying to ask for a suspension? Or are you trying to prove something? That you are better than the school? Now you stay quiet, but you are smiling underneath that face, aren't you! To think a first year could do this, it is disgraceful. And the rest of you, are trying to be idiots?! Goading him on to fight, and even insulting the other party! Not to mention the fact that you are seniors! Setting a bad example for Evan, what do you think you are doing?! Why, you ought to be ashamed, being such bad role models for the other students! Irresponsible! Are you trying to get us to explode in anger and expel you?" The scolding went on and on and on.

They got a scolding of a lifetime, thanks to him being tipped off about their lightshow the day previous. Wincing as he yelled at them, the Heroes sighed. Fighting was what they did. Evan appeared to be on the verge of crying, but clung to Mir. After he was done, Stan sighed.

"Now, I don't know why, but I was requested to leave your punishment to the Student Council President. You do know him, right? Here's his number. One of you, call him now."

They stared at the number written on the paper, shivering under Stan's stare. Aran picked up her phone and called the number, while the others inputted it in. Aran heard the phone click, but before she could say a word, she heard two words.

"Not interested."

It was cut off. Sputtering, she stared at the phone. "Hey! He cut off on me! I didn't say a word!"

Mercedes frowned, a little irritated. "Try again." Aran mumbled something in irritation and pressed the call button again.

"I already said I'm not interested."

But before he hung up again, Aran butted in. "Don't you dare hang up on me, Student Council President! Ch - I mean, Stan made us call you."

"Oh," came the placid reply. "Hmm? Is this one of the Transfer Students' number? I thought you were a phone salesman."

"Yeah, it's Aran. Stan said you wanted to see us?"

"Mr. Stan to you, Aran. Meet me in the reading room on the second floor. I don't like to be kept waiting."

The phone was clicked shut, while Aran stared at the others. "We gotta go see Nineheart." The Heroes gulped down their building dread, before they slid of the staff room, wondering what sort of punishment they were in for. They entered the reading room to see Nineheart reading a book.

Nineheart looked up and snapped the book in his hands shut. "So glad you are finally here. Now, I've heard of your offences, fighting in school grounds and making a disturbance of yourself." With the same serenely annoyed tone they were so used to hearing from the Advisor himself. "So here is your punishment. Recently, the school has been rather dirty, with dust clouds everywhere. Go clean the school. I'll be watching you. All of you. Even though the 5 of you did not participate in the fight, you are still punished for even cheering Evan on." With that, Nineheart dismissed them.

Aran frowned. Cheering on?

"Some people must be blind if we are 'cheering Evan' on. Yeesh, not even a lighter sentence." The polearm-wielding warrior grumbled, and the others seemed to nod in agreement.

"Cleaning the school? Why do we have to do it?" Phantom rolled his eyes, grimacing. "Yuck. The school has janitors. Yuck. Let them do the cleaning instead. Yuck."

Luminous shook his head. "Deal with it, thief. Maybe this would teach you some humility." He smirked, deflecting all of Phantom's glares. Just as they were about to fight yet again, Shade came between them.

"Enough. We don't need a bigger mess and a larger grave to pull ourselves out from." Shade chided the two, and they huffed at each other. Evan laughed nervously, before heading to the giant pile of dust in the middle of the corridor. He bent down to clean it when a bunch of boys appeared out of nowhere.

"Let us clean it," said one, pulling out a broom.

"But, Nineheart says to..." Evan started, only to be cut off again.

"Don't worry. We'll take care of it. Just don't hurt us," said the other, getting to work sweeping the dust away then ran away as soon as they were done. Turning to the others behind him, he tilted his head in confusion. The rest simply shrugged.

"...Let's move on." Shade gestured towards the next level, and they hurried along. Evan spotted another bit of dust, running forward to clean it. The others followed suit. But they were stopped when a bunch of girls appeared out of nowhere. Again.

"We'll clean it for you." One girl said, as she started to clean.

"So you are the Fateful Transfer Student? Kuhuhuhu, don't you forget about me," Another girl smiled slyly, before the girls disappeared. Huh? Evan looked even more confused, while the rest were trying to make sense of the phenomenon.

"Phantom, did you ask them to help us out?" Luminous' suspicions were immediately on the thief, who shook his head.

"No way! I wouldn't subject such pretty girls to cleaning up after me, unless they are my maids."

"Did you hire them as your maids?"

"Wh-Why you!" Mercedes parted the two incensed idiots, before sighing. Aran shook her head, and moved to the rooftop. There, they saw Shade had already gone up the moment the girls appeared, crouched down and stroking a cat. He looked up and waved.

"Meow."

Even with all their quizzical looks, Shade looked barely perturbed by the strangled meowing the cat was making. "It's Lily," he explained, pointing to the cat's grey and white fur. "See, it looks just like her hair."

The cat ran towards them, and looked up. "I got everything from Shade," she said, dismissing their incredulous gaping as amazement. "Well, you got what you deserved. The dust and dirt are from the monsters in there. Just kill those in the Dust Zone over there, will you?" Lily pointed to a blue zone, where the Heroes could see magic rippling. Nodding, they entered the Zone.

They exited soon after, bloody, bleeding and extremely satisfied. Tossing everyone mana potions, Phantom got to healing everyone. Tired, everyone sat around on the roof, chugging mana potions while waiting for Mir to turn into a dog again.

"I'm sorry. It takes a while to change him back," Evan apologized as Mir returned to his dog form.

Lily coughed. "Anyway. Those monsters you just fought. Let's call them Dusties. They were the ones that caused the dust and dirt to accumulate in the school. They are apparently formed from the evil desires of the people around."

"Who would even have such evil desires?" asked Mercedes, glancing at the staircase door.

"The students," continued the cat simply. "The large ones, like the one you fought yesterday, are stronger versions of Dusties. We'll call that Troublemakers. When an evil desire is strong enough, a Troublemaker would form from these desires."

Evan frowned, tapping his chin. "Francis showed me an image the other day. It was of black stuff falling from the sky. Do you think…?" Lily nodded. As they were discussing, they heard footsteps.

"Hmm? What are you doing on our turf?" Oh, a familiar voice to all of them, but not one they wanted to see. Not three they wanted to see either.

"You sound like a thug, Hawkeye." Mihile sighed.

"Oh. It's the Transfer Students." Eckhart pointed out, raising an eyebrow at them.

"Hey! Okay, fine. Isn't he Evan though? From the first year?" Hawkeye pointed at Evan. "Hey, didn't you beat up the kid in the backyard with just one finger?"

"No, it was one toe." Mihile corrected Hawkeye. Evan pointed at himself and looked back at the rest, who seemed a little surprised as well. The rumors turned into that?!

"No, it was his sheer presence." Eckhart called out, causing all the Heroes to stare at him in shock. "See, they probably got into another fight again, look at their clothes."

What?! Shade and the girls immediately directed their attention to Mir, who 'barked' at them. Phantom and Luminous? They nodded. "I agree," they spoke simultaneously. The students looked taken aback.

Hawkeye chuckled, before turning to Evan. "Say, kid. How about joining the Taekwondo Club? Girls like strong men."

"I say join the Kendo Club, it instils discipline and focus," came Mihile's retort. Just in case Hawkeye felt like stealing new recruits again, which he clearly was.

"No, join the Underground Fight Club. You would fit right in." Eckhart put in his own opinion. Hawkeye turned and pouted at both of them.

"Hey, get in line! I got to him first!" The three guys were starting to move towards Evan. Poor Evan, he turned back the rest and mouthed, "Help" before he looked as if he was tearing up. The Heroes saw menacing people, trying to kidnap their little Dragon Master, holding out their grabby hands. Evan was yanked behind them immediately, Phantom and Luminous standing in front of him like bodyguards. Aran had a hand on Evan, while Mercedes was standing next to him. Shade was behind, staring at the rest.

"Woah, you guys sure are close." Hawkeye held up two hands, as if he was surrendering. Evan smiled nervously, shaking off Aran's hand and squeezing through Phantom and Luminous.

"It's alright. I don't mind joining, actually. It's just that I really don't have the time." He smiled apologetically to the three of them, who sighed.

"Tch, you're as boring as Mihile!" Hawkeye grinned. The rest of the Heroes relaxed visibly.

Mihile huffed. "Studies are important as well," he shot back. "Although, I don't think that's what he's getting at. He has more than enough help as it is." He waved a hand to the elder 'students', who smiled sheepishly.

"So what are you doing up here anyway? All of you?" Hawkeye looked at them questioningly. Shade sighed. He explained everything again to the three again, with Mihile chuckling away.

"Seems like you got marked by Nineheart. Good luck to you," he chuckled. Hawkeye laughed, before holding out his phone.

"Here, have our number. You seem like a good bunch. Give us a call whenever you change your mind." They inputted the phone numbers, while the Heroes processed what Mihile had said. A sense of doom overcame them. Marked by Nineheart? This could not be good.

Once done, the three of them waved. "See you!"

The Heroes hurried down the stairs into the reading room, taking a turn midway to change into cleaner uniforms, then immediately rushing to Nineheart. Evan smiled brightly.

"We did it! No more dust!" Evan cheered, but Nineheart looked at them disapprovingly.

"Except you didn't do it, not on your own," Nineheart muttered, closing his book.

Evan looked shocked, and the Heroes came to his defense.

"Yeah, sure, we had help, but we didn't ask-" Aran tried to defend Evan, but was cut off by Nineheart.

"Nonsense. You must have bullied others into helping you. I said I would be keeping a close eye on you, didn't I?" Nineheart glared at them, and the Heroes gulped. Nineheart misunderstood what he saw, that was for sure. Aran looked extremely irritated for being accused for doing what she didn't do, but she couldn't say anything. Mercedes wanted to call him out for it, but he continued before she could say anything else.

"You can keep up with your lies, if you want. Just know that I will be keeping a close eye on you. All of you. See where the web of lies gets you to." Nineheart was finished, turning away and opening his book. The Heroes stood there, shocked. Mercedes was the first to retort.

"Well, believe what you see, but not what you hear. Let's go." Mercedes strode out of the room, and the others followed suit. Luminous' grumbling could be heard from all the students he walked past.

Finally, when classes are over, the Heroes met up again on the first floor. They could hear Evan talking to Francis.

"How about a meeting after school with us 'otakus'? I'm sure you've got nothing after school, Evan." Francis was saying. Evan shook his head, hugging Mir.

"Sorry. I got to meet Cygnus."

"C-Cygnus? B-But...how? How did you get time with Cygnus of all people? You devilish fiend, Evan…"

"No, no, it's nothing like what you are thinking." laughed Evan. "I'm just new here, so she wanted to bring me around." Putting Mir on the floor and getting up to leave, he looked up to see the rest of the Heroes gathered outside his classroom to fetch him. They nodded and made their way towards the front gate.

There, they saw the chauffeur looking around frantically.

"You there! Have you seen Miss Cygnus? Where could she be? Oh.. she has an important dinner to attend," The chauffeur looked very worried, as he looked around, "You don't have anything to do with this, right?"

Luminous frowned. Taking out his phone while the others entertained the chauffeur, he called Cygnus. Cygnus picked up soon after, her sweet voice coming in through the device.

"Hello? Is this Luminous?"

"Yes."

"Oh, is something wrong?"

"Your…. there's a man out here looking for you."

Her tinkling laugh floated through the phone. "Oh yes, my chauffeur was at the door. So I snuck out at the back. I'm currently outside the school, could you meet me there instead?"

Luminous sighed deeply, very irritated. He waved to the others to go, mouthing 'Cygnus' as he exited the school. The others hurried after him. Turning around at the corner, they saw Cygnus waving to them. "Psst! Over here! My chauffeur is looking for me? Ah, I'm taking a break today. I'll return to him later when I'm done!" She smiled at the group, before taking Evan's hand.

"Come on now, you DO want to see the city right? I can show you around! There's a stall downtown that serves really good food." Cygnus seemed rather cheerful, extremely happy even. Evan smiled and nodded, while the other Heroes couldn't bring it upon themselves to remind Cygnus and Evan what was going on. The scene was too cute, Cygnus holding onto Evan as they moved across the city.

Along the way, they ran into Irina and Oz. Oz called out to the large group of people.

"Cygnus! Evan! The rest of you too! I didn't think you would be here! Anyway, what are you doing here?"

"Ah. I'm giving them a tour around the city! Oh, what are you doing?" Cygnus smiled.

"It looks more like they are giving you a tour." Irena sighed, amused.

"Getting some rice skewers! They are really good. Here, I'll treat you today!" Oz skipped up to the stand cheerily, only for her smile to fall flat the moment she pulled out her wallet. "Oh… I don't have money…"

Cygnus smiled, brightening up Oz's depressed frown. "Don't worry. I'll treat you today!" The little heir walked up to the Auntie, holding up a tiny book. "Ten rice skewers, please! Do you accept personal checks?"

The Auntie stared at her strangely, before pushing back the checkbook.

"What are you talking about? Of course I don't." The Auntie smiled kindly at Cygnus, who looked devastated. Evan looked disappointed, while Oz shook her head.

"Don't worry about it, Cygnus. We'll come back another time." Oz smiled, but the disappointed look on her face said otherwise, despite trying to hide it. Aran sighed, slumping over at the prospect of no food. Mercedes didn't seem to mind, as with Luminous. Shade did not seem particularly interested, not about food. Without a word, Phantom walked up and patted Evan on the head.

"I'll treat you. Don't worry." With that, he walked forward to the Auntie.

"Ten rice skewers, please." He flashed a charming smile. The Auntie smiled and blushed a little at his incoming charm. She handed him ten rice skewers, and he held up the mesos for her to collect, not batting an eye at her confused expression when she got foreign money. Walking back to the girls, he gave a bow to Cygnus, earning an eyeroll from Luminous and Irena. Oz just giggled, while Evan smiled, used to Phantom's antics. Phantom grinned and presented the girls with their rice skewers. Evan snuck one away in his pocket for Mir, who was grateful that Phantom had decided to get one for him. Once they had their rice skewers, they all took a big bite.

The first timers were not used to the sudden flavour hitting their tongues. The Heroes let out a breath of fire, while Cygnus coughed. Oz laughed at their faces after that.

"Spicy, isn't it! It's really good too!" She giggled, while Irena looked on, shaking her head with a small smile.

"Sorry you had to treat us, Phantom. Next time, we'll repay you." Irena smiled. Cygnus, who had only taken a small bite, smiled, despite her red face.

"It's really good! Next time, we should get more here." She waved a hand in front of her mouth, and Irena laughed.

"That reminds me, you usually eat alone in the office, right? Why don't you join us for lunch?" Irena invited Cygnus, who nodded, overjoyed.

"Thank you! I would!"

Oz grinned, and held up her phone. "Hey, guys! What's your number? We can hang out again next time!"

Eventually, when everyone had finished exchanging phone numbers, Oz had a cheeky smile on her face. She eyed Cygnus holding onto Evan's hand, and laughed.

"Are you guys like… you know…?" She giggled, and the rest of the Heroes had to cover their own mouths to stop giving Evan embarrassment.

"Oh, no! I'm just showing them around. It's nothing like that." Cygnus nodded, while Evan, who had not gotten it, nodded. Shade smiled at the naive Evan, it was almost like Freud back then. Though, not as innocent.

Irena hummed, smiling. "Really now, even after getting treated rice skewers from one of your 'school tourists'?"

Cygnus nodded brightly. "Yes, I'm sure."

"Then try the tarot card reading across town! It's really good!" Oz suggested, pointing across the road to a tent. Nodding, the Heroes and Cygnus made their way over. As they walked down the bridge, a light blue hair caught their eye. Meep! All the Heroes froze, including Evan. Cygnus looked puzzled.

"What's wrong?"

"Ahh, it's nothing, E-Cygnus. L-let's go." Evan laughed nervously, tugging Cygnus over. The Heroes approached Nineheart warily, hoping that he wouldn't notice them.

Too late. He turned and saw them. He looked genuinely surprised.

"Cygnus. Transfer Students. What an odd group. I didn't expect to see you here." He frowned, before shaking his head.

"I know what you are all thinking. What am I doing here? Merely satisfying my curiosity about fortune-telling. The fortune-teller here specializes in romance and friendship, though the credibility is rather low." Nineheart shook his head, but Cygnus looked excited.

"Would you like to try, Evan? It sounds exciting!" Evan nodded, and the two headed towards the tent. There, Evan saw Cassandra. She seemed shocked, but quickly shushed Cygnus.

"Don't worry. I won't tell anyone." Cygnus promised Cassandra, who then decided to give Cygnus a gift.

"I'll tell a special fortune for you then." Evan and Cygnus each took a card, and Cassandra frowned.

"Interesting. It seems that you were connected in a past life. You, Cygnus, an empress and Evan, you were a warrior in her world." Cassandra chuckled, while Evan laughed, though it sounded a little fake. Mir grinned, and Evan shushed him. Cassandra continued. "Your lives are very connected."

"Did you hear that, Evan? We are connected by our past lives! Maybe you re- Ah, never mind." Cygnus smiled and hopped a little, and Evan nodded. Smiling, they returned to the group of Heroes.

Nineheart had questioned the Heroes of their activity, and he sighed. "What are you going to do now, Cygnus?"

"I'm going to show them the bus stop, and we are going to the park."

"Do you know how to take a bus, Cygnus?"

"...Oh Nineheart, don't worry. I have taken a bus before, I'm no longer a child!" Cygnus nodded, and the group made their way towards the bus stop. As they waited for the bus, Mercedes looked around and coughed. The air wasn't as fresh as back in Elluel and Ellinia. In fact, everyone was coughing. Evan covered his mouth.

"It's really stuffy…" Cygnus shook her head.

"Maybe the exhaust smoke from the cars are getting to you. Stand here, it isn't so bad." The Heroes shifted away from the bus stop, all of them waving in their faces. As they checked their UI, they were shocked. Poison?! Aran gulped.

"Maaaybe we should stay away from the bus stop till our ride comes." She suggested, and the rest nodded quickly. Not even in Magatia was the smoke so dense.

Soon enough, the bus came. They all got on, expecting a rather smooth ride, like the airplanes and airships. Nope.

As soon as the bus started, everyone lurched forward. Luminous immediately dove for a pole, clinging onto it with two hands, his body brought close. Phantom was on the other side, using one hand to hook around the pole and also holding his body close to it, his other hand holding onto his cane that was supporting him. Shade grabbed the area above Phantom, catching his balance. Aran was leaning against a pole, completely unaffected by the bumpy ride. Mercedes was holding onto the same pole as Aran, desperately trying not to fall. The younger members of the group was having the time of their life as they slid up and down the bus. You could hear Evan and Cygnus having fun, while Mir sat on his bum and slid around like a kid bad at ice skating. After a while, Mercedes cautiously released the pole, and slid along with the other two, joining in the fun. Her movements were elegant, compared to the flailing of arms from Evan.

The boys continued to cling on. Phantom looked away embarrassed, while Luminous looked the other way. Shade sighed. Calling out to the three and the 'dog', he waved to the seats. "Please, take a seat."

Cygnus looked confusedly at Shade. "But Eunwol, I thought we had to reserve a seat first."

Shade sighed deeply. Why was he telling her about common sense in her world again?

When they finally got off the bus and into the park, they found Cygnus petting a brown dog. Elwin?!

"What a cute puppy! Aww," she smiled. Elwin barked and ran around Cygnus. She laughed and giggled, playing with Elwin for a bit.

The Heroes grimaced. Luminous muttered under his breath, "Elwin, you sleazebag. You're worse than Phantom." Phantom shot him a glare.

"Hey. How are you insulting me with Elwin again?"

Cygnus looked up at Luminous. "Did you say something?" Luminous quickly shook his head, as Elwin shot a look at him.

"I'm sorry. Was I acting awkward? It is kind of my first time out too. Well, I really enjoyed my time with all of you, especially with Evan. It's... a very different feeling. Thank you to you all for keeping me company today." Cygnus bowed to them, and the rest immediately bowed back.

"It's nothing, Cygnus!"

"D-don't bow to us!"

Evan and Phantom waved their hands at Cygnus frantically, trying to get her to raise her head. She did, after a while, but frowned.

"Do you hear something?" Elwin started to bark, jumping onto Cygnus.

"Miss Cygnus!" The chauffeur had arrived.

Cygnus sighed, before turning around. "My chauffeur is here. I have to go now. Thank you again. See you!" They all waved to Cygnus as she left, hearing the chauffeur chide her about abandoning him. They sighed, and the limousine left. When she left, everyone turned their attention to Elwin.

"She's kinda cute up close."

"You did not just do that to Empress Cygnus." Luminous was glaring at him with disapproval.

Elwin pouted and snorted. "I had to distract her somehow. Anyway, the Dusties are back. Normally, there's too little, but when the numbers start to grow...You all gotta take em out. I'll stay here to make sure no one gets near. Go!"

The Heroes groaned. More fighting. They entered the Dust Zone, only to meet face to face with a large crowd of Dusties. Evan sighed.

Aran yelled out a war cry and the Heroes charged into battle.

They exited the Zone after a long time, rubbing their injuries. Thankfully, they didn't bleed too much in there. The crowd this time was slightly smaller, so they didn't take too much damage. They returned to Elwin, holding onto health and mana potions. As they took a drink, Elwin nodded.

"Good. Oh yes, I wanted to tell you. I think someone is out to get Cygnus back in school. These ears can hear things, and they are rather creepy. It sounded something like...'You wench! Soon, this school will go down...' and cue evil laughter." Elwin shivered. Mir gave him a skeptical look, he hadn't heard anything.

Mercedes folded her arms. "This sounds very bad. We should keep an eye out at all times. Especially on Cygnus. We have to ensure nothing bad comes out of it." Everyone nodded, and they returned home to prepare for school the next day.

When they returned to school again, they splitted up. When class ended though, Evan got a call. Nineheart was calling him. What was wrong?

"H-hello? Nineheart?"

"Evan. I have no one to rely on this time, but I need your help. Come up to the roof, I'll tell you more there." Evan frowned, and immediately texted the rest of the Heroes. They needed to know where he was going, or things might get messy.

When Evan arrived, he was somewhat surprised to see the Cygnus Knights' counterparts there along with Nineheart. He looked around in surprise, and Nineheart coughed.

"Today, we have gathered here to do a little investigating. Now, there has been a new rumor going around. Apparently, the Fateful Transfer Student has thick lips, and that Cygnus must kiss him in order to ensure the school's safety. I for one do not believe in rumors, but something must be done." Nineheart was unsettled, and Evan knew why.

"But the previous rumor only had the Fateful Transfer Student taking over the school. Besides, the only one with thick lips is that first year that just transferred in before Evan and the rest"" Hawkeye exclaimed. Nineheart nodded.

"Alright. I need to see his student records. For that, we need to sneak into the staff room and take it. Someone with sticky fingers would be better Evan, do you mind if you..." Nineheart trailed off, looking at Evan, who frowned. Didn't Nineheart have access anyway?

"Why me?"

"Because you are the most guilli- I mean, bravest of us all. Unless you have an alternative, we would like you to go get it." Evan shook his head. Of course not. But he knew who would.

"I'll ask Phantom. H-"

"No worries here, Nineheart. We heard everything." The group looked up to see Phantom perched on top of the shelter, shaking his legs. The rest of the Heroes stuck their heads out, waving to them. The students stood shocked as each one landed on the roof with a thump.

"I'll be back with those documents. Although... we don't really appreciate Evan being asked to do this sort of thing." He smiled, a dangerous smile playing on his lips, before walking down the stairs. Luminous groaned.

"Don't mind Phantom. Out of all of us, he's the one with the stickiest fingers. And that is an understatement."

In the staff room, Phantom didn't think he'll see Elwin again. In fact, he had almost tripped over the dog. Elwin barked and glared at the thief.

"What are you doing here?"

"Stealing some documents. Why?"

"Why would you…" Elwin sighed. Then again he was talking to a phantom thief. "Just in time, I guess. There's some Dusties over there in the Dust Zone, thank the Transcendents all the teachers have gone home for today. I barely managed to seal it. But I saw some Dusties run in there with some papers." Phantom rolled his eyes.

Flicking open his phone, he sent a message to Evan informing of the delay. With that, he adjusted his uniform and charged in.

Evan received the message, frowning. He gathered the Heroes quickly, as Nineheart gave orders to the students.

"Phantom needs our help. Seems like the Dusties beat him to the documents." Evan showed them the message. Shade looked back at the Nineheart, who appeared to be occupied at the moment. "Let's go before he notices us." Shade pushed everyone down the staircase, and they rushed down to the staffroom.

They entered the Dust Zone, hearing Phantom already taking down a group. He noticed them and waved, then proceeding to rip a document from a Dust and killing the said monster in one fluid motion. Waving the documents at the Heroes, he jumped and landed in front of them.

"Distract the Dusties while I nab the documents. I don't know how many there are, I'll just take all those with his name on it." Phantom pointed to the paper, with Bully's name typed on it. The rest agreed, and they spread out across the entire zone.

They took out the Dusties, just as Phantom picked up the final piece of paper. Holding onto a stack, he gave them a thumbs up. The rest of the Heroes started to heal themselves, as Phantom rushed up the roof.

Appearing before Nineheart, he dumped the documents in front of him. "Here you go! All the documents with his name on it, or anything else. All 80 pages!" said Phantom in his cheery voice. Nineheart seemed dumbfounded. His mouth opened and closed like a goldfish, causing Phantom to laugh.

He leaned forward, a sly smile on his face. "What's the matter, President? Cat got your tongue?"

Nineheart sputtered, before he glared at the master thief. "The document I was looking for is pertaining to his background, not his entire student record. We have to sift through this entire pile!"

Chuckling, Phantom straightened. "But I didn't know which was it, so I naturally took everything. Having an excess is better than a lack of, hmm?" Nineheart shook his head, confused, before he called Irena to help him go through the entire stack.

"This is his grades. No."

"This one here is his previous school. Not this."

"This here is the teacher's' remarks. Not quite."

The rest of the Heroes returned soon after, ignoring Nineheart and Irena sorting through the papers. They instead went for Phantom, who had perched on the fence at the side of the roof, though he was facing inwards. Shade handed him some clothes. Phantom ran off with them, the vivid red bloodstain on his back visible to those behind. He returned later on without the dirty clothes.

Finally, Nineheart reached the bottom of the pile. By then, he had roped in the help of Mihile and Eckhart to expedite the process. "This is it. This details his background." Phantom peered over his shoulders, scratching his head. "That's the first paper I picked up."

Mihile looked up at him, mildly amused. "That's a little too much, don't you think?"

Phantom shook his head. Eighty seemed like a normal amount, compared to hunting twenty of a rare item. It was hard. Mihile was slightly taken aback.

Nineheart suddenly got up. "This is it. So that is how it is. He is the son of the Chairwoman of the School Committee Board." Phantom coughed, then laughed. He knew where this was going. If Queen Areda's counterpart was near the top, what else would she go for other than more power?

Irena gathered the papers, staring at Nineheart. "So that would mean what? What does that have to do with anything about the rumor?"

Nineheart shook his head. "The Chairwoman isn't who you think she is. She's worse than you think. If I do recall, there was one time when she went to talk to Cygnus. I was just outside the door." Nineheart frowned, as if trying to remember the incident. "She had talked to Cygnus for a little while, before she exited the office and spoke ill of Cygnus, calling her a cunning witch." Nineheart looked rather worried, as he continued his explanation. "The Chairwoman had wanted to build a shopping complex here, and was determined to take down the school at all cost. Cygnus is her target."

Nineheart started towards the door, beckoning to the others behind him. "Quickly, to the office! We've got to let her know!"

In the office, there was no one there. Nineheart looked around worriedly. "She was here a few minutes ago. Where could she have gone? Someone, call her quickly!"

Shade dug out his phone, clicking on Cygnus' contact, while the other Heroes hovered near him, trying to get a listen in. Shade placed it on speaker mode when Cygnus picked up, to allow everyone else to hear her voice.

Cygnus' voice was heard, though it was as if she was rather excited. "Hello? Eunwol? What is it? Is Evan asking for me? Please do tell him I'm on my way." Her laughter could be heard.

Shade glanced at Evan, surprised. Evan shook his head, signifying denial. Shade turned back to his phone, trying to keep his voice calm. "Evan didn't send you a message."

Surprise could be heard. "Oh? I received a message to meet you urgently. It was sent under your name, Fateful Transfer Student. Oh, my phone has no more battery. I'll talk to you at the meeting area, alright?" With that, the phone clicked, and the dial tone rang throughout the room. Shade shut it off and shoved the device into his pocket.

Silence. Where was Cygnus going? If it wasn't Evan, who was she going to meet? The pieces fell into place, and the most devastating image was conjured from their minds.

Cygnus. Kissing Bully.

"NO!"

Everyone yelled out in shock. Disgust was rendered in its raw form on everyone's face.

"Cygnus would rather kiss a dog!" exclaimed Oz.

"But with the rumors going around, she might just fall for it," Irena interjected, shivering.

Nineheart was having none of that. "We need to find her immediately. Oz, Irena, search the school. Mihile, Eckhart and Hawkeye, search the area around the school. Evan, I need you and your group to search around town, including the more remote areas. You can take the bus.." Each person nodded, and everyone spreaded out.

At the bus stop, or some distance away from it, the Heroes split up. Shade went with Luminous to the more woody and humid area, while Mercedes and Aran went to the park with the fountain in it. Phantom and Evan were together going towards the yard Cygnus had brought them to the previous day. Once everyone had their coordinates, they got onto the bus and headed towards their destination.

When the bus finally reached Sunset Yard, Phantom practically jumped off the bus and rushed in. Evan struggled to catch up. Phantom was determined to ensure Cygnus never kissed Bully. It was disgusting, and he would never allow a relative of Aria of all people to be deceived into doing something that they were unwilling to do. It was almost like his duty.

They found Lily, pretty much pacing around with worry. She pointed a paw into the park. "In there! I saw Cygnus go over there, but now there is a lot of Dusties! They are blocking your way!"

Phantom wasn't really happy, seeing that he was delayed. Being fashionably late was one thing, being late to stop a disaster was another. He got his card deck ready, hurrying Evan along. The pair rushed into battle, determination to stop Cygnus kissing another man fueling their morale.

They destroyed all the Dusties as fast as possible, rushing further into the park to find Cygnus. But when they got to the end, Cygnus was gone, only Bully and Areda was seen. Phantom growled, pointing his cane at Bully. "Where's Cygnus? You have ten seconds to answer!"

Bully looked up at him with angry eyes, then bellowing in a loud voice, "Cygnus this, Cygnus that, I'm tired of this! I don't even like Cygnus! I like, I like, I like someone else!" He turned to his mother, his fists balled up at his sides. "Mom, I want to be a normal person! I don't want to be part of your plan any more."

Areda looked rather irritated and taken aback, snarling at her son. "Good lord! How can you be so disappointing! You inherit my good looks and charms, and you want to waste it by being normal?"

"... He has good looks?" asked a curiously confused Evan to Phantom. Too bad, the thief could only shrug in equal confusion. "If thick lips are a thing here, then maybe."

Bully shook his head, glaring at his mother. "I know I have your looks, Mom, but they aren't the entire world."

Areda looked furious, yelling, "How dare you talk back to your own mother! I started from scratch to get up to this point, and this is the gratitude I get? You dare go against me, who had planned everything out in order to ensure the best?"

Bully quivered, but stood strong. "I don't want to do this any more, Mom. Enough. Let me go! I'm leaving!" With that, he ran off, past Phantom, past Evan.

Areda looked crushed, then she looked furious. "I worked so hard on this. So close… to the end. I will get that school, no matter what!" Dark energy swirled around Areda. Phantom and Evan got ready to fight. The atmosphere was the same as before when the Troublemaker appeared from Bully. Sure enough, Areda collapsed and a Troublemaker appeared.

Lily called out, identifying the Troublemaker."It's the Greedy Troublemaker! Brought on by her greed and jealousy of Cygnus! Take it out, as soon as possible! I'll handle the lightshow!" Phantom smirked.

Evan fiddled with his phone, while Phantom looked on. "Say, Evan. Are you calling them?"

Evan nodded quickly, sending a message to everyone else.

"Then they better get here quick. I for one am not losing the chance to actually beat Areda up."

Evan looked up in confusion, only to see Phantom buffing himself. He called out to the master thief, wondering what he was going to do. "Phan-"

"Not going to lose the chance to actually do some damage. Hopefully there would be some things left for the rest of them to fight with!" Phantom called out cheerily, before jumping into battle. He landed in front of the Troublemaker, grinning widely.

" _Penombre!_ "

He jumped back and let out a flurry of cards, striking the Troublemaker. "You have no idea how long I have waited to get a hit on Areda. Well, it isn't exactly her, per say, but it would do. For now." Phantom landed and casted _Phantom Charge_ , surging forward and dragging the monster further into the park.

The monster waved its sleeves at him, and stacks of money flew towards Phantom. Phantom dodged out of the way easily, his luck giving him a leverage over the monster. He disappeared in a crowd of cards, appearing behind the Troublemaker and landing a few hits using _Mille Aiguilles_. He kept up his attack, the Troublemaker being knocked backwards each time. He jumped over the Troublemaker again, resuming his attack on the Troublemaker. The Troublemaker summoned forth stacks of money surrounding Phantom. Gritting his teeth, Phantom moved out of the way a moment too late. The stacks exploded, sending the Hero flying. Ouch. Phantom landed on his feet, wincing. No way was he going down to the Troublemaker, much less one from Areda's counterpart.

He charged forward again, this time using _Impeccable Memory_ and setting up a shield around him to ignore any damage. Magic surged around his cane and it took on a shape of a bow. Phantom held it up and shot the Troublemaker multiple times, as the Troublemaker's sleeves formed a hammer form and slammed down on his shield. No damage to Phantom. Phantom laughed at the Troublemaker as it continued its useless attacks. Once the shield was gone, Phantom hopped back and used _Penombre_ again, destroying a little of its defense.

He wasn't expecting the sudden money bombs. They sent him flying again, and this time, the Troublemaker landed a hammer attack on him. Phantom didn't hear anything crack, but it hurt. His clothes were tattered a little, and he could feel burns on his hands and legs. That would take a while to heal.

Time to finish this up. Phantom wobbled to his feet, positioning his cane to defend himself. Thief and monster faced each other. Phantom cockily beckoned the Troublemaker, who took the bait. It charged forward with a hammer attack again. Phantom laughed maniacally and charged forward, only to jump out of the way at the very last moment. He landed on the Troublemaker's head and used _Mille Aiguilles_ once more. Striking the Troublemaker on the head, it took out the last bit of health it had. The Troublemaker struggled, froze, and swirled into a black hole, before disappearing. Phantom landed on the floor, thoroughly satisfied.

The rest finally arrived to see Evan handing Phantom a potion.

Aran looked around wildly. "Where's that Troublemaker?! I'll make mincemeat out of it!"

Evan glanced up, and waved to them, before smiling a little sheepishly. "Phantom took it out long before you guys got here."

"Whaaaaaaaaat!" Aran glared at Phantom, grabbing him by the collar. "Why didn't you wait for us! I was planning to get some experience points from that fight! Aw, why did you have to hog all the experience?" Phantom laughed and shrugged.

Luminous folded his arms. "So like Phantom to steal all the experience points before anyone else got here."

"You have to give it to him. The Troublemakers were tough, and he got out alright. Besides, the Troublemaker would have made more damage if he hadn't taken it out. The speed of the vehicles here are rather slow compared to Camel Taxi, and that's saying something." Mercedes pointed out, somewhat amused at Luminous' irritation.

Shade shrugged. "Can't say we didn't try to rush here."

Pouting, Aran shook Phantom till he was dizzy. "Dibs on the next one, I tell you! These Dusties and Troublemakers give quite good experience points!" Everyone held up their hands, agreeing to Aran's request. Phantom smiled and laughed. Meanwhile, Areda's fainted body was ignored by the Heroes.

Evan soon got a call from Nineheart reporting that Cygnus had returned home, thankfully. They lugged the passed out Areda to the hospital, ignoring the moans of 'taking over the school' and 'shopping mall' from the deadweight. Dumping her at the first chance they got, the Heroes fled back into the Maple World.

"Seems like this time, a disaster was avoided. Well done to you." Lily congratulated them.

Phantom laughed. "Seems like I did all the work this time, hmm? I say, you owe me something, right?"

"When Hell freezes over, petty thief." Luminous shot a death glare.

Phantom leaned forward mockingly, his irritatingly smug smile still plastered on his face. "What was that, stuffypants? Did I hear 'I'll wash your ship for a month'? I'll gladly take you up on that offer! So let's see, when do you want to start?" Luminous felt his rage build up, and he removed his staff from his back.

"Right now."

No one was able to put in a word when the two were kicked out of the house by Elwin in order to prevent total destruction.

Meanwhile, a phone clicked shut as soon as the Heroes entered the dorm rooms. The owner pursed his lips, staring at two video files in his phone. One was on the roof, the other was during their search for Cygnus. He would have to review the videos one more time.


	4. Chapter 1 Intermission

Hello again! Time for a little sidequest today!

And to the Magick anon, yes, probably, I may put in Kinesis. Unfortunately, since I'm playing MSEA, I won't get to see Kinesis until you do! And yes, it sucks that we don't have Beast Tamer. But, major hyper for Black Heaven!

Thank you to all of you who have given me reviews! Stay cool!

A shout out to the Magick Anon once more! So, uh, I've tried looking up your user, and I'm sorry but I am unable to find your username. So, do you mind if you PM me instead? ^^ Kinesis looks pretty awesome, I just can't wait. But, in 2 years time, probably.

One more thing! Tell me your choice in the review! This would affect how Chapter 2 turns out!

Orchid would rather date...

1\. Luminous

2\. Shade

No Phantom, unfortunately, he will flip!

Maplestory © Nexon

* * *

It was a week before the Heroes came back to Elwin. Blinking at him as Elwin started to fuss about their absence, Aran shrugged. "Couldn't help it. We were in the Temple of Time. You know how time goes by in that area. Not to mention Akarium, and we also went back to Momijigaoka to help Hayato and Kanna there."

Elwin was almost pulling his hair out when Aran finished. "Temple of Time?! No wonder you were gone for so long! Anyway, Lily managed to manipulate your attendance, but don't you come back here a week late! Hurry up, school's starting!"

The Heroes were pushed into the room. They shot puzzled looks behind them, but hurriedly changed into their school uniforms and rushed to school. It really had been too long, for they were lost for a bit at the front gate. Finally remembering their classes, the Heroes parted. Entering their classes, each wondered why Elwin seemed rather panicked when there was no one in class. Mercedes and Aran got straight to discussing battle tactics, while Evan pulled out a book about Onyx Dragons and resumed his research. Phantom was using the newest trick he had learnt for the phone, which was to use this 'internet' to find out about previous jewels. Shade was sleeping on his desk while Luminous was hard at work studying and revising his knowledge about magic. Half an hour passed, and even Aran had fallen asleep. The Heroes wondered what was going on.

Francis suddenly burst into the classroom, shocking Evan who had been feeding Mir. "Evan! That's where you were! I've been looking all over for you! There's assembly, come on, Nineheart is waiting!" Evan could barely put in a word when he was yanked out of his seat by Francis and dragged to the assembly area.

Phantom almost dropped his phone when Hawkeye slammed the door open. Shade immediately shot up and jumped out of the way, landing on the floor on his belly. Luminous had flipped the book of his table and ducked underneath, before peeking out and glaring at the chuckling thief. Hawkeye looked out of breath, and he started to yell. "Oi! Why are you guys still here! Come on, it's time for assembly! Let's go!" With that, he dragged all three guys out and rushed off.

At least the girls didn't have such a rude shock. Irena had knocked on the door, before coming in. "Mercedes? Aran? Didn't you hear? It's time for assembly. Let's go." Mercedes closed her book and placed it away, shaking Aran awake. What was assembly? The only other assembly Mercedes knew was the assembly of Maple Warriors, or the Maple Alliance. Why was there an assembly here? She hurried off, with Aran dizzily trying to follow the elf.

In the assembly, Nineheart was staring disapprovingly at the latecomers. "Do you not remember we have assemblies around this time? But anyway, better late than never. I will give you a brief summary of the current assembly, since you were not here earlier to hear the announcement." Nineheart didn't look too happy. The Heroes were just confused, what announcement? The Maple Admin wasn't here to make one. Nineheart continued, "Today we are showcasing our clubs. For now, we are having a trial period of a week, so as to let you get used to it. You are suppose to choose your clubs that you wish to take part in." He explained. The confused looks of the Heroes only had Nineheart pinching the bridge of his nose in annoyance.

"Take a look around. If you find anything that you are interested in, or wish to learn about, or even enjoy doing, you can submit a form to try out the club for the next week." The Heroes brightened up immediately, understanding the words 'interested' and 'enjoy doing'. They rushed off to find the clubs of their liking, wondering what was in stall for them. Meanwhile, Nineheart leaned against the wall, rubbing his temples. Cygnus had suggested this. Why did she care so much about these Transfer Students?

Mercedes was quick to settle. She chose the Archery Club, knowing she would be able to fit right in. But something else seemed to be hindering her progress.

"No crossbows, Mercedes." Irena smiled kindly, pushing Mercedes' bowguns back to her.

"Why not? It shoots arrows as well, I do not see the difference." Mercedes was stubborn, she didn't want to hurt her fingers using a bow.

"It's against the rules. The Archery Club only uses practice bows." Irena sighed, shrugging. She pointed to the stack of practice bows. "Look, the crossbows are neat and everything, but really, maybe you should stick to using the bows for now." Mercedes conceded, though she did look miffed as she took an arrow and bow. No wait. Irena was pretty sure she saw one arrow, but Mercedes shot three, that pierced into all three targets.

"You should get moving targets." Mercedes suggested as she filled out a form Irena gave her. The Archery Club Captain was flabbergasted. Moving targets?!

Evan had headed straight for the area with the most books, finding an Oz buried underneath among other members. Pulling Oz out from the pile, he looked up her. "What's all this?"

Oz was happy. Extremely happy. The President of the Mystery Book Club handed Evan a book. "Oh, it's all mystery books! Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, all the famous detectives! Our club holds regular mystery events, where we have to solve a mystery before the time runs out! It's exciting, right?" Evan flipped the book a little. Mir barked, and Evan crouched down.

"I know, Mir. It's just that it sounds really exciting. Different from the normal quests, don't you think?" Evan inquired the little black dog, who turned his head.

"I don't know, Master. Mysteries makes me think of the Black Wings." The 'dog' growled, bitter about their trap from their early days. Evan smiled, patting Mir sympathetically.

He flipped open the book, speed reading the story hidden in its pages. "Hmm, it seems rather interesting… Oh! I know who the murderer is!" Mir looked up and started to jump on Evan, trying his hardest to find out what Evan meant. When both 'dog' and master figured it out, they flipped to the end of the book to find out that they were wrong. Why?! Evan frowned, reading the book again. It appeared that he missed a clue, as did Mir.

His mind was whirling with new knowledge, and his curiosity got the better of him. Looking up at Oz, he smiled sweetly. "This is rather fun. Oz, do you think you could teach me how to get better at this? I don't understand where I went wrong."

Oz nodded, her side ponytail bouncing up and down. "Sure thing, Evan! All you have to do is to fill in this form with your name on it!" Evan took a pen from Oz and scribbled down his name.

Aran on the other hand, was a little more troublesome. She had gone from Dance ("What's with all this prancing around? I rather watching penguins slide on their stomach.") to Infocomm Club ("Huh? Newfangled Internet whatisthis...") and even to Track and Field ("Move faster, porky! Man, watching you all run makes me wanna chase after you guys."). Aran had finally plonked herself on the ground, grumbling. There was nothing that was suitable for her and Maha, not to mention most of those that barely attracted her attention are filled with guys, with a 'no girls allowed unless you are a manager' rule.

 _Maybe you aren't cut out for this sort of thing, Idiot Master._

"Shush, Maha. I just don't get so much of these things. Hmph. No girls allowed? I'll show them!" Aran growled, folding her arms. Aran could see hand-to-hand combat, but she dealt with a weapon, not knuckles. Leave that to Shade. She grumbled a little more, before her eyes fell onto a sword. Sure, it was a wooden one, but a sword nonetheless. Getting up, she walked over to the weapon and picked it up. It wasn't too heavy, not like Maha. Waving it around a little, Aran grinned.

She was just getting used to the sword when a yell could be heard. She looked up to see a guy standing there. "Uh, can I have my sword back? I kind of need this for a demonstration." Aran glared at him, before her gaze returned to the sword. Tossing it from hand to hand, she grinned at the guy.

She gripped the handle with one hand, and pointed the sword at the owner. "What sort of owner leaves their partner lying around? At least take good care of it. Anyway, what sort of club are you in?" The guy looked somewhat confused. He grabbed his sword, trying to tug it away from Aran, but her grip remained steady.

The guy gave up after a while. "Wow, you have a tight grip. I'm from the Kendo Club. Not that it matters to you, our captain doesn't usually allow girls into the group due to the fact that they aren't serious."

Aran remembered previously, Mihile had spoke about letting Evan join the Kendo Club. Was he the captain? She grinned, poking the guy in the chest. "Take me to your captain, big guy." The guy looked somewhat irritated and weirded out, but led her straight to, well, who else but Mihile. Aran felt her smile go wider and wider. Now, someone she really wanted to spar with. She ignored the guy that was asking for his sword, instead pointing it at the surprised Mihile.

"Spar. Now."

He looked even more puzzled, before shaking his head. "I don't spar with new recruits, Aran. Maybe next time. If you care to join, that is."

Aran frowned. "Spar. I know how to use a sword. Come on, don't tell you are scared of being beaten by a girl?" She taunted the student, knowing full well the pride of the Dawn Warrior was in this person in front of her. Sure enough, Mihile took up the challenge. He took his kendo sword and put on his helmet. Signalling to the recruit that had brought her here, he had him bring Aran armor.

Aran took one look at it and kicked it aside.

"It has worse stats that this uniform gives me. Plus, it looks really ugly." Aran complained, before her fierce gaze fixed on Mihile. He shivered, unsure if Aran always had such a dangerous look in her eyes. "Let's begin, Captain." She placed both hands on the kendo sword. She had a handicap, since Maha was still on her back. Well, a even bigger challenge for her.

Mihile charged forward to attack Aran, who frowned and stopped, using one hand to wield the sword and block his attack. Each time he tried to land one hit on Aran, she blocked it with the sword. With one hand. After a while, Mihile stopped and removed his helmet. "What's wrong? You are maintaining a defensive tactic, even though I gave you so many openings. Do you know how to even attack?" Mihile was skeptical, why would Aran just keep defending?

Aran tossed the sword in the air and caught it with one hand, the other on her hip. "That's because you are going easy on me."

Mihile blinked. "How would you know?"

"That's because you have so many openings. Come on! I'm not going to lose to someone like you! If you go easy on me, what's the point of sparring? Come at me with your best shot, Captain Mihile!" Aran positioned herself to fight, her gaze darkening once more. "Or are you that scared of a girl?"

Mihile took the bait. He charged forward, but Aran could tell he was taking it a lot more seriously. Now this was going to be fun. She defended, struggling to find an opening. Unlike earlier, there were almost none. Aran could hear the club members cheering for Mihile, to 'take down that arrogant girl', while squeals from other girls came as 'You can do it, Mihile! She can't take you down!". This irked Aran. She did not like being compared to a guy, of all things. She was rejected from the army because of her gender.

Her annoyed state made her careless, and Mihile struck a blow. Aran winced, but smiled. Mihile had expected Aran to flinch, but when she didn't, he withdrew his sword and tried to go in for another hit. No can do. Aran finally spotted an opening. Mihile had his arms raised in the air, leaving his abdomen wide open. It was now or never. Aran bent forward, pulled the sword back and took a swing. The sword struck the armor with a loud sound, then silence. A second ticked by, and Mihile flew across the sparring area, into the crowd.

Aran whistled a low whistle. "Wow. Didn't think that you were that light. If you are out already, that is kinda too early. Whatcha' say, one more time?" Glares were shot her way as the girls helped Mihile up. Mihile shook off the hands and removed the helmet, clutching to his stomach.

He was in awe. "N-not really, Aran. It really hurts. You have incredible strength, though I wonder where you learnt how to fight like that." Aran laughed, tossing the sword back to the dumbstruck member. "Learnt it from the best of the best. But really, is that the best you can do? If that's it, then you are seriously in need of someone to help you."

Mihile shook his head in wonder. "M-maybe not. We aren't supposed to kill anyone, anyway. Your blow, I do believe it can be enough to cause someone nausea if they were not wearing protection."

"Eh. What's this about new members? Hmm, they are all guys, aren't they? Where are the girls?" Aran was flipping through the list of people, ignoring what Mihile had said, before stopping at a list of potential managers. She grimaced. Before Mihile could say anything, she scribbled her name down on the list of new members.

"Here. Have my name. See, even a girl can be stronger than a guy! Better take that as a lesson, Mihile!" Aran chuckled, handing Mihile a rice skewer. "Here ya go, this will make you feel better." Mihile muttered a thanks and took a bite, before glaring at the laughing Aran with his mouth smoldering and grabbing his water bottle.

Phantom fared no better. He had split off from the group to check out the others. Band had not appealed to him in the least bit, despite the strong music they were playing. He just didn't think he would appear charming while blowing on a tuba till his face was red. As he walked around, he heard someone calling him. Walking over, he spotted one of his classmates.

"Hey, Phantom! Over here!" The girl called out, and Phantom walked over. He remembered her name vaguely as Chang, or something like that. She was in front of a table of crafts, and he bent down to examine it. Jewelry of different kinds were scattered all over it. Phantom picked one up, eyeing it. Fake. Disappointed, he placed it down. "What's all this?"

The girl smiled brightly. She had a thick pair of glasses on her nose. She took them off and wiped them, before returning her attention to Phantom. "These are makeshift jewelry! We here in the Art Club make accessories of sorts. I heard you really like jewels, so I thought these might catch your attention."

Phantom eyed the little accessories, before shaking his head. "Ah, please. The only sparkle that catches my eye is the rose I see before me." The girl blushed, while Phantom moved from the table to stand in front of an art piece. He had completely no idea what it was. Another girl peeked out from behind the art piece, and he flashed a smile. She squeaked and retreated.

"Are you the creator of this piece, miss? It is rather… intriguing. Tell me more about it." Phantom held out a hand to the girl, who took it and smiled shyly. "It's an abstract picture. I just used shapes with edges on them to make a face. Like Picasso." Phantom smiled and nodded, as if he understood what she meant.

Who was Picasso anyway?

He drifted on, to see a blank canvas. Hmm? He stopped in front of it. The girl from earlier, Chang (Was it? Yes, it was.) seemed rather excited. "You can try drawing an image if you want. It's more of an experiment than anything else." Phantom stared at the blank piece, before asking Chang for some paints, and more canvases.

He started to paint. His memory served him rather well in this case. His strokes were careful and precise, and he changed colours often. Yellow. Blue. White. Phantom could close his eyes and do this in his sleep. But wait. he paused, before he had added in purple. No. He started to mix the colours, finishing with a dirty brown. Perfect. Phantom resumed his painting, smiling a little.

When the artwork was completed, he stood back. Collective gasps could be heard. He turned and bowed down, looking up to see Shade and a few other people. On his canvas, two people Shade knew very well were painted on it. Aria and Freud. They were drawn as if they were holding up Maple World, with Shinsoo's wings wrapped around them. Their faces were peaceful, their eyes closed. Phantom had to use four canvases to finish the image.

"Wow." Shade muttered, glancing at Phantom. Phantom had a serene smile on his face as he gazed at his artwork. "Hmm, not as what I imagined. But this will do for now."

Chang grabbed Phantom's hand. She seemed to be in awe, smiling away. "Phantom, you have to join the Art Club! This is beautiful! You have the talent to be a famous artist!" Phantom smiled and shook his head.

"Alas, that is not my fate. Painting is more of a getaway than anything else. I wouldn't want to do it all the time. Perhaps next time, shall we?" With that, Phantom drifted off, leaving his painting behind.

And just like that, he was without a club again. He could hear the disappointment from the girls, but Phantom really did not want to spend all his time painting. It would get boring!

He came across Eckhart, who was standing there. He paused, before walking up to the student. "Eckhart. What club are you in? The Underground Fight Club, right?" Phantom remembered Eckhart speaking about it once, so why not now? Where was the booth anyway?

Eckhart eyed him, then shook his head. "You don't talk about the Fight Club."

"If you don't talk about it, how do you know about it?"

"You just do."

"Fine. I do then. Show me where this club is."

"You don-"

"Yeah, yeah, just show it to me already." Phantom grumbled. Eckhart stared at him for a moment, before bringing him to a staircase. Going down, Phantom was met with a ring. And by ring, he meant battle ring. Phantom stood there, wondering what was going on, when Eckhart pushed him in.

"Hey!" Phantom turned around, wanting to know what Eckhart was doing, when he realized that he had an opponent. He was huge, mean and ugly. Phantom tilted his head. "I'm supposed to fight you? Is this what the Fight Club is about?"

"Yeah, what about it, pipsqueak?" The burly guy bellowed, before charging in for Phantom. The thief smirked, and dodged out of the way. Twirling his cane, Phantom danced around his opponent before eliminating him by allowing him to trip over Phantom's cane and fall out of the ring.

"Now this is fun."

Shade was just confused. The sight of everything overwhelmed him. Not to mention that Phantom's painting had stunned him a little. Not a lot of people recognize Aria, much less Freud, but they were all admiring the painting. Shade left the group quickly Walking around, Shade didn't find anything that really attracted him. Most of the clubs seemed rather stressful, and the only relaxing one would have been Mystery Club, but even that was tiring for his mind. Shade did not want to solve mysteries after training. If he wanted a mind workout, he could just find Grendel and discuss with him how to combat Lucid's magic. But that's beside the point.

"Hey! Eunwol! Over here!" Shade looked up to see Hawkeye, dressed in clothes similar to those that Mu Gong wore. He walked over, wanting to know what Hawkeye wanted to say.

"Say, Eunwol. You know, I've seen you walking around looking real lost. So how about this, I'll show you my club, hmm? I bet it will be the best club you have ever experienced." Hawkeye gave him a thumbs up, before turning to his club. Shade could see so many people clad in the same outfit. A couple of girls were at the side, whispering. Hawkeye grinned and waved, but the girls immediately turned away. Patting Hawkeye, Shade smiled. He looked so crestfallen.

He poked Hawkeye in the shoulder, gesturing to the mat. "So what's your club?"

Hawkeye brightened up immediately. "It's Taekwondo! Hand to hand combat. Here, I'll show you." He demonstrated a few punches and kicks. Shade nodded, watching him. Hawkeye, who looked rather pleased, spared with another person. "Once you get the hang of it, it's muscle memory," he finished, looking smug. Shade smiled slightly. His fighting style was rather similar to Shade's back then. When Hawkeye's sparring partner stepped off, Shade took his place. "May I try? Just a short spar, I do believe I have tried your style before." Hawkeye stared at him for a moment, and grinned.

Handing him some bandages, Hawkeye gestured to his own hands. "Wear this. It would protect your hands. Just so you know, since you say you've tried this before, I'm not going easy on you!"

Shade agreed, wrapping the bandages around his hands. He got into a defensive position, mimicking Hawkeye. Hawkeye moved to attacked, swinging his fist at Shade. Shade reacted instinctively, deflecting his punch. Hawkeye immediately went for a kick, which Shade ducked. Taking the chance when Hawkeye was temporarily unbalanced, Shade darted around Hawkeye and slammed a fist into his chest. Hawkeye's surprised face twisted with pain. He flew back, knocking over a couple of bystanders. Unlike Aran, Shade had tried to hold back. But it was apparently powerful enough to send someone bowling over a few people.

"Ouch... man, you hit hard!" Hawkeye got up, rubbing his chest. Wincing in pain, he walked over to Shade, giving him a light punch on the shoulder. "You have potential, Eunwol, but you gotta learn how to control your strength!" Shade blinked at him, unwrapping the bandages around his hands.

He gave them back to Hawkeye, who took them and put them away. "Hawkeye. Is this Taekwondo helpful?"

Hawkeye returned his attention to Shade, nodding. "It helps me build these muscles, you know!" Shade smiled. Trust Hawkeye to come up with such an answer. "Taekwondo deals with speed," Hawkeye continued. Shade's eyes brightened. His attacks were faster than Aran's though not as fast. Perhaps Taekwondo was a form of fighting that most Pirates used back home.

"This club sounds really good, but I can't really stay in school. I'm sorry." Shade had heard what Nineheart had said earlier, and he knew he could not possibly stay for too long a time. Lily would flip.

Hawkeye groaned, then sighed. "Bummer. Well, if you change your mind, you know where to find me! You can come anytime you want to join in, if you want" Shade smiled, nodding. So maybe sparring with someone else other than the Heroes would be entertaining.

Luminous stood at the side, grumbling. People had tried attracting him to their clubs, but he found it too troublesome in a lot of their activities. So he was now leaning against the wall, scowling away. Luminous was bored, he had wanted to take out his book to resume his study, but Elwin had once told him that others may try to read it if he was too careless, so he was no longer allowed to read it unless he was in vicinity of the others. He grumbled under his breath, and heard a cough.

Scowling, he turned to face the source, only to take a step away. "Nineheart," he greeted. The Student Council President nodded. "Luminous. You do not find anything interesting?" It sounded more like a statement than a question, so Luminous shrugged.

"Not really." He replied honestly. Nineheart brushed some hair aside, looking at his clipboard. "Then how would you like to see the Student Council?" Nineheart suggested.

"Student...Council? You mean the organization you are in charge of?" Luminous raised an eyebrow, folding his arms. What was Nineheart driving at?

Said person was now smiling. "The Student Council is not an organization per say. We are a group of students dedicated to be the medium between the teachers and students." He paused, and Luminous quickly nodded. "That is to say, we ensure the rules of the school are followed here in school, as well as ensuring the wellbeing of the students. The Student Council would ensure that students have a safe and enjoyable time in school." Nineheart explained further.

Luminous eyed him, absorbing the information. Keep up the rules? An image of Phantom flashed across his mind, and he grimaced. Wait. "Does breaking the rules also mean catching a thief?" Luminous inquired, his interest now captured.

Nineheart looked surprised, but answered nonetheless. "Yes. Thievery is frowned upon, especially among students." He wondered briefly what made Luminous think that.

Luminous smirked. Oh, the thief was in a bad situation now. With the Student Council, he could be caught easily. And with Nineheart in it, oh ho, he was definitely in trouble.

Nineheart took a piece of paper and a pen from his clipboard and handed it to Luminous. "If you are interested, you can write your name here." Luminous immediately grabbed the pen and scribbled down his name. If it helped, then the Student Council can be around to catch that damn thief. Nineheart looked somewhat satisfied as he took back the paper. Luminous handed back the pen.

"Oiiii, Luminous!" Aran came running up, smacking the 'squishy' mage on the back. Luminous fell forward, landing on the ground with a 'oof' while Nineheart had taken a step back. "Whatcha doing? The rest of us are already done, come on!" Behind her, was the other Heroes. Phantom looked a little beaten up, but he was satisfied. Mercedes looked thoughtful instead. Evan was clutching to a book, looking extremely excited. Shade was merely neutral, as per usual.

Nineheart looked around for a bit, before staring at them. "Have you all found a club?" Everyone nodded, their heads bobbing up and down. Nineheart smiled, satisfied. "Then I do hope you keep to the schedule. Luminous, we will have a meeting later on. You do know we have to stay back, right?"

The others looked at him in surprise. "Uh, we have something after school. Everyday." Mercedes called out. Nineheart blinked. "But you just signed up to be in a club under probation. That's why you wrote your names down on the list, right?"

The Heroes stared at him, with the exception of Shade, who planted his hand on his face. "Uh, guys, did you not hear what Nineheart said? We are supposed to take part in the clubs. And if you haven't heard, they take place after school." The words sank in, and everyone took a second to process what Shade had said. Once they did, they looked at Nineheart for confirmation, who nodded. Their faces turned ashen white, their expressions changing from one of shock to one of panic and back again for a few seconds.

Mercedes, Aran, Phantom and Evan scrambled off, shouting the captains' name in panic, while Luminous snatched the clipboard from Nineheart, flipping to the page with his name on it. He grabbed the pen clipped on it and scratched out his name as fast as possible, almost tearing the paper before handing it back to Nineheart.

Shade sighed. Seems like even now, the Heroes had selective hearing. He watched as those who could not find the captains scramble around the assembly hall, trying desperately to find those papers and cancel their names. He could hear Aran yelling, "I thought it was meant for some popularity contest!" Well.

This was going to be eventful, Shade believed, as he watched the amusing scene of the Heroes trying to explain to the captains why they had to remove their names.


	5. Chapter 2

Hello everyone! I'm gonna be taking a little longer with each story, especially the ones on FriendStory, since they are getting longer and longer. But no matter! I will work on the intermissions as fast as possible!

That said, the result of my question in the previous chapter has been revealed! But it is kind of obvious, isn't it?

Thank you for all your reviews, especially to those out there who helped me decided on how the story goes! Oh, and congratulations to all MSEA players out there, Black Heaven is finally here! Have fun!

Magick Anon: I can't seem to find your user. Do you mind if you PM me instead? 2 years for Kinesis is a long time, yes. What is worse is that Black Heaven, though here already, is taking too long to update. Hmm...

Remember to leave a review, if possible! It always brightens my day when I see one!

Maplestory © Nexon! And to all Maple Story players out there, good luck and have fun on Maple Story!

* * *

Two weeks. Two weeks after the fiasco with the thicklipped boy. Out of all these two weeks, the Heroes only went back to school once. Once. Elwin was quite irritated, but Lily was infuriated. She was, after all, the one in charge of making sure they do not get expelled. And them being missing for a week is not an easy job to remove. She had to manipulate the attendance to at least include them in, though, she couldn't manipulate the entire school to remember seeing them. It wasn't that easy.

The Heroes were a little ashamed, apologizing profusely. They had gone to help Cartalion to clear a little of Hilla's undead army, while preventing Magnus from meeting her. It would have been disastrous. They had been at it for a week before Cartlion said that the army would take some time to recover, sending the Heroes back to recuperate. Once they got their break, all the Heroes rushed back to Henesys, only to find two very annoyed mages.

Elwin forgave them after their explanations, but Lily was still irritated. There had been a test that week, and she had to manipulate their scores to ensure they stayed in school and did not need to see any teachers. She gave them a harsh scolding, before sending them along the way.

The Heroes parted at the staircase again. Phantom, Luminous and Shade just entered the classroom, rubbing their sore bodies from fighting the two commanders when they heard a scream. Jumping into action, they rushed into the classroom to see Orchid looking devastated. Everyone else just stared in shock. No enemies were around. The guys looked around, confused. Cautiously, in order not to provoke the person behind him, Shade walked up to Orchid. "Is everything okay?"

Orchid shook her head vigorously, her face white. Her hand shook ad she gave Shade the letter. He took one look at it, and his expression fell. Woah. Phantom and Luminous peeked over his shoulder, and both gasped.

A threatening letter. They could not make sense of the smudged ink, but the words visible formed a message that not even the Heroes would be able to forget. A stalker was on the loose. But before they could speak, the teacher came in. Calling everyone to their seats, he frowned when he saw Orchid trembling. The teacher had to take her aside and ask what was going on. As they spoke in low tones, no one could hear their conversation. But it was clear what Orchid said when the teacher's face turned to a shocked expression, then one of anger. He marched down to the office after telling Orchid to calm down. The guys shivered in their seat. Who would write such a thing?

During break, Evan was called into the office for some reason. Peeking in, he saw Aran and Mercedes along with the Cygnus Knight's counterparts, excluding Eckhart and Mihile, along with Nineheart and Cygnus. Mercedes spotted him and beckoned him over.

Nineheart coughed to get the attention of the group before him. "Now that everyone is here, I will explain the situation." He opened his notebook he was holding, flipping through it. "Someone has received a threatening letter this morning. It was a second-year named Orchid. I'm sure you know of her?" Aran opened her mouth to answer, but Mercedes slapped a hand over it.

"No, we don't, Nineheart. Please elaborate." Mercedes replied smoothly, muffling a struggling Aran. When she released the warrior, Aran gave a glare at the elf, who frowned. Evan sighed. They were helping Orchid of all people. They had to go by it carefully, or they might mess up.

Hawkeye stared at them in surprise. Nineheart shook his head. "Hmm, that's a wonder. Orchid is a famous idol. Although I don't watch television much, even I know of her name."

Evan quickly put in, "We don't really get around much. So we don't know her as well as you do!"

Hawkeye shook his head. "Guys, Orchid is _the_ idol. Her popularity exceeds this place!"

Oz piped up. "She's not that nice as a person, though. She's cold as ice!"

Hawkeye huffed, folding his arms. "Yeah. There was this time when I saw her eating alone. I asked her if I could join her, and she gave me the stink eye." He looked irritated, to which Irena laughed.

She sighed, "Anyone would have gotten the same treatment, but if it's you, Hawkeye, I say, no wonder." Hawkeye seemed to register her words, and glared at Irena. "Hey!"

Oz giggled. Nineheart frowned, before speaking in a loud voice. "I asked you three to come here to help me, not to bicker. Aran and Mercedes, I asked you because I do believe Orchid would open up to you. Evan, you were here because out of all of us, you are the least likely to have given Orchid that letter," he reasoned. Gesturing to the empty space, Nineheart continued, "Mihile and Eckhart are currently busy with their own club activities, and therefore are unable to make it. Eunwol and Phantom are working to keep the rumors down. Luminous is running late, though."

Speak of the devil. The doors opened and Luminous ran in, a little out of breath. He looked extremely irritated. Glaring at Nineheart, he took a while to calm down, before speaking. "Sorry. Aka... Mr. Akarium would not let me go until I finished the extra homework he gave me." He quickly changed his words when Nineheart gave him a calm and even stare, making him shiver in his uniform.

Nineheart sighed. "Evan, would you do us a favor and get that letter from Orchid? The rest of us would stay here and prepare to find the culprit." Evan nodded, rushing off to find Orchid.

He came up to the second-years' classroom, slipping in easily. He saw Orchid standing, and quickly made his way over. "Uhm, Orchid?"

Orchid gave him a cold stare, before waving him over. "The student Council President asked you to find me. You finally came." She seemed to be rather irritated than scared. Evan cleared his throat nervously. Orchid continued to complain. "I didn't come to school to get threatened! What have I done to deserve this? I can't understand who would want to threaten such a cute, pretty and charming girl like me," she ranted, while Evan stood there, fearful of her wrath. If she was anything like the Orchid they knew...

Evan cleared his throat, asking quietly, "What did it say?"

Orchid turned and snorted. "What it said? You can take it for yourself to read! Catch that stalker, if it's the last thing you do!" With that, she stormed out of the classroom. Evan hurriedly took the letter and rushed down to the office.

He came down to see Phantom and Shade already there. Handing the letter to Nineheart, the Heroes waited for a complete misunderstanding. Nineheart smiled kindly at Evan. "Thank you, Evan."

Oz took the letter, examining it. "It's a little damp. Other than that, looks like a simple love letter to me."

Irena frowned at it, folding her arms. "It is possible she over exaggerated, given her temper and need for attention."

Nineheart shook his head. "Let's see the contents, shall we?" He took the letter from Oz with a handkerchief and gingerly opened it. Taking out the letter, he flipped it open. Everyone crammed behind him, trying to see what was written.

The only visible words were: **Dearest Orchid** , **must** , **you** , **be** , **couple** , **will** , and **yours truly**.

Nineheart paled, and the people behind him gasped. There was one thing that everyone knew.

A dangerous stalker was on the loose.

Oz cried out first, "Oh god! This is wrong!"

"She may not have been a nice person, but even I would not wish this on her." Irena looked worried.

Nineheart closed the letter. Shaking his head, he spoke, "This is really a threatening letter. She wasn't overreacting at all." The Heroes remained silent, processing the information. To be honest, the letter did not make any sense, and there was something that didn't fit. Evan found himself wondering what the smudged letters were. What if they formed a more coherent sentence. Aran looked confused, while Mercedes was thoughtful. The guys just looked puzzled.

"I swear on my grandfather's name that I will find that stalker! This is unforgivable!" Oz looked fired up. Mercedes suddenly nodded. "Yes. This is not right. Whoever it is must be stopped at once, for the safety of everyone else!" She declared. The Heroes exchanged glances. Seems like even Mercedes was taking the 'stalker' business a little more seriously than the rest of them. Then again, stalking was a very difficult thing to do back in the Maple World, but not impossible. It might be that Mercedes had experienced such a thing before.

Or it could just be her race's history with humans. It was probably the latter.

Irena sighed. "You two… I don't think you have to swear on your grandfather's name, though, Oz." Oz shook her head, her eyes glittering. She had taken out a magnifying glass and started to examine the paper. She called out to Mercedes.

Pointing her magnifying glass at Mercedes and waving it at the other Heroes, she yelled, "Some serious psychopath must have done this! They smudged the ink on purpose to stir up even more terror in the reader!" Oz turned to the Heroes, who seemed a little taken aback by her attitude on this. Evan in particular, who believed the smudged ink was by accident, taking into account the damp paper.

But now that he thought about it, was he being tricked?

Oz continued confidently, "Fortunately, I can see some fingerprints left on the sticker here used to close the letter. Mercedes, could you and your group over there get me some powder and brushes from the science lab?" The Heroes blinked slowly. Mercedes nodded, while Aran, after thinking about it for a long while, nodded.

Evan raised a hand. "Uhm, what's fingerprints?"

Oz looked somewhat surprised. "It's the prints left by your hands, silly! You know, look at your hands! Can't you see little swirls around them? Those are your fingerprints. Wherever you touch, fingerprints are left behind." Evan looked surprised.

He turned to Phantom behind him. "Is that why you wear gloves all the time?"

Phantom chose to hurry after the girls instead.

In the science lab, the Heroes quickly walked through the desks, only to find a dog sitting at the back. Elwin?

Shade walked over and patted him, asking, "What brings you here?"

The dog sat down, tilting his head. "That's the question I should be asking you. The monsters in here aren't cleared yet. They are all in the Dust Zone." Shade explained everything to him again, and Elwin frowned. "A threatening letter? Sounds bad." He got up and walked over to the portal, pointing a paw at it.

"I saw some Dusties grab some powder and brushes before I finished. Maybe they are all in there." The Heroes nodded, though Luminous grumbled, "Why are the Dusties always taking what we need at the most crucial times?"

They rushed in, with Aran yelling, "COMBAT TRAINING!", and proceeded to mop the floor with Dusties. Not that it was that clean, but it would do. Sitting at the science lab, they exchanged potions. Their clothes were torn and tattered again, and Aran's clothes were slightly green from the poison.

Aran sighed. "So why are we their errand dogs again?" Everyone simply shrugged.

"Probably because we are the most gullible of them all. However, the experience points gained from training on those Dusties are quite worth the trouble." Shade pointed out. Everyone agreed. The only complain Phantom had was that the clothes were too flimsy.

"They tear easily! Totally not made for combat!"

"But they aren't, Phantom," replied Mercedes, picking at her own uniform. "The students here study all day, not fight."

Once fully rested, they picked up ten containers full of powder known as Aluminium powder, as well as three brushes. They hurried down in their bloody and tattered clothes once again and presented it to Oz, who blinked. Hawkeye snickered. "Did you guys get into a fight again?" They shook their heads no, while Nineheart glared at them.

"We, uh, had a nail stuck on these clothes. So we accidentally hurt ourselves!" Aran threw in an excuse. Shade planted a hand on his face. Nineheart' expression said it all. He didn't believe them one bit. Oz yelled out then.

"I don't need three brushes, guys! I only have two hands! And I'm pretty sure one container of powder is enough." Oz looked shocked at the amount. Evan piped up, "But excess is better!" The Heroes nodded.

Shade put in, "You might destroy the brush. And use more aluminium powder than you think you would."

"But that's still too much! Ten containers for one small sticker?!"

Irena shook her head. "Come on, Oz. Let's get to work."

Oz sighed, and grinned. "I'll show you what the Captain of the Mystery Book Club is capable of!" She started to put the powder on the sticker, dusting it. The bell rang, and the Heroes returned to class.

When Evan entered the class, Francis called out to him. "Evan? Why did the President call you to the office just now?"

Evan shrugged. "I don't know. Apparently, Orchid is being targeted by a stalker." He bent down to pick Mir up, who 'barked' and wiggled. Evan walked up to his seat and place Mir beneath the table.

Francis seemed infuriated. "Who dares stalk my beloved Orchid?" Evan staggered back. Was it just him, or…

Nah. It couldn't be. Not Francis and Orchid, right? Right? Evan was starting to feel nervous. He explained everything to Francis, on how Oz would find the culprit through a fingerprint on the letter Orchid found.

Francis seemed uneasy after that. "S-So the ink on the letter smudged." Evan nodded.

"Oz thinks whoever wrote it is a psychopath." He added in helpfully, wondering why Francis seemed so scared. Mir seemed to be chortling with laughter next to his feet. Evan wondered why.

Francis' face turned red, and he was trembling a little. "Hahaha, of course. But what if the letter wasn't meant to be a threatening letter? What if it's just a love letter?"

Evan frowned. "Well, I don't know. The message seemed rather clear to me, but the sentence itself seemed a little incoherent."

Francis laughed nervously. "O-Of course. Hahahaha…"

"Oz said she was going to find fingerprints and catch the culprit! It sounds pretty exciting, doesn't it?" Evan smiled brightly. It seemed so magical, to pick up traces of people everywhere they touch. But it appeared Francis thought otherwise.

"H-How does she do it?! She isn't even CSI!" Francis cried out. Evan shook his head.

"Remember the science lab thing where we had to put our fingers on ink and then on paper? Oz has a compilation of that thing! She said she could find the culprit through that!" Evan looked pleased with himself, while Mir rubbed against him. Telepathically, he spoke to his master.

 _Master.. is it just me or is Francis quaking in his shoes? I can smell his fear from here. But then again, I think I would know why._

Evan looked down in surprise to see the dog grinning at him. Francis didn't seem to see Evan move, replying, "O-Of course… I remember doing that in science class.. Mwahahaha!" Evan looked at him strangely, wondering why his laughter seemed a little strained.

"Are you alright, Francis? You are sweating quite a bit. Is it that hot?" asked Evan, looking worried. Francis did not look well at all.

Francis coughed and laughed. "Hmm? What? Oh, I just sweat a lot. You know?" He smiled shakily at Evan. "Sometimes the black dragon in my arm squirms so much. Hahaha…" It was then Stan came in, calling everyone to their seats to give an announcement.

He started. "Now, I know there has been some rumors going around school," he shot a glare at the class. Evan sighed. Seems like Phantom and Shade didn't do a good job at suppressing those rumors. Stan continued, "Just so you know, crimes are crimes. And you will not go unpunished. Writing a threatening letter is one of them. It is not just some prank." He paused, eyeing the entire class. "Whoever is found responsible should be prepared to have their parents visit school and prepare for possible suspension."

A squeak could be heard from Francis behind him. Evan wondered why he sounded so scared.

A classmate called out. "But writing such letters is wrong!" Another chimed in, "Who would do such a horrible thing?" The previous one shook his head, before calling out, "We should release their names on the internet!" The other one yelled out, "Upload their images online!"

A gasp could be heard, and a loud thud. Everyone turned to see Francis fainted on the floor. "Teacher, Francis fainted!" someone called out. Evan hurried over and picked him up.

" I'll bring him to the infirmary, Mr. Stan. Don't worry!" He quickly dragged Francis up the stairs with the help of Mir, dumping him in the infirmary.

After class, Evan received a call from Nineheart. "Evan, it was quite surprising. The culprit turned himself in. Your oppressive interrogation tactic actually worked. I'm impressed." Evan frowned. What tactic? He didn't do anything. Nineheart continued, "Please come to the office right away. You'll see who it is." Evan shut his phone, and hurried there.

When he entered, Nineheart nodded. "You are here, Evan. Good of you to turn up as soon as I called you." In the middle of the crowd, stood Francis. Evan looked surprised.

The Heroes glanced at him, and nodded, that yes, he was not dreaming. They seemed mildly surprised as well, though Phantom whispered-swore that he saw an Orchid doll back then when he was fighting (caning) Francis the Puppet Master in his hideout.

Cygnus smiled kindly at Francis. "Francis, was it you who wrote that threatening letter to Orchid?"

Francis waved his hands in the air frantically. "It wasn't even a threatening letter! My hands got sweaty when I was nervous! The ink must have smudged then! Y-You'll keep this a secret from the teachers, right?" He looked scared, trembling in the middle from the stares of everyone around him. Evan felt pity for him. He moved to stand next to Francis. He wasn't like the Puppet Master from before.

Evan's voice shook as he spoke. "Please keep it a secret! I'm sure it wasn't his fault!" Francis gave him a grateful look. Oz seemed rather irritated.

"No way! Everyone agreed that the letter was written by a psychopath!" she cried out, her face turning a little red in anger. Francis shook his head. "N-no! I wrote the letter twice last night, one for practice! See, I brought it with me! This should prove my innocence!" He took a crumpled letter from his pocket and gave it to Oz, who began to read it out loud.

 **Dearest Orchid,**

 **You must know what's in my heart so I am writing you a letter. I'll make sure you'll be my girlfriend. We will be a great couple, won't we? Don't worry. I know we will.**

 **Yours Truly**

Silence ensued.

Irena's sigh broke it. "Did you really think she would accept such a love letter?"

Hawkeye frowned, shaking his head. "You know, the threatening letter seemed a lot better compared to this."

Oz just studied it, before calling out, "Even your grammar and spelling is horrible!"

Phantom took one look at it and promptly burst out laughing, before getting jabbed in the rib by Luminous. "How rude can you get, petty thief?" He hissed at the him, who was chortling with laughter. It may be short, but even Phantom knew no girl would even accept that weird love letter.

Francis looked shocked. "I-I thought it was a perfect love letter!" He did seem to believe that, and Evan sent him a sympathetic look. Mir just rolled over lazily, speaking telepathically again.

 _Thought so. The letter had his smell all over it. I just wanted to confirm my suspicions. Although, Evan, what is love anyway?_

Evan crouched down and whispered, "I don't know."

Francis fell to his knees, his hands clutching at his hood. "Then please, tell me how to write the perfect love letter!"

Irena smiled, seemingly pitying the poor junior. "I think you should get rid of the male bravado."

Oz nodded, bouncing in excitement. "I agree! Love letters are meant to be pure and romantic." She swayed a little there, her eyes closed.

Cygnus even put in her two cents. "And the last statement should be impressive enough to move a girl to tears!" The Heroes looked surprised, even Cygnus was helping Francis.

Francis's eyes were spinning. "Ugh, listening to you all makes my head spin. Can I get a sample?"

Luminous nudged Phantom in the ribs.

"Aren't you the master of love? Go on, take him under your wing, Phantom." Luminous was smirking at him.

Phantom glared at the Light Mage, before walking up to Francis and bending down. "So, Francis. If you see Orchid getting attacked, what do you do?"

Francis automatically answered, "Take the hits for her to give her enough time to run away."

Phantom turned around and walked back, shaking his head. "Hopeless." He walked past Luminous, using his cane to land a light blow on the back of his head for making him do that. Aran shrugged. It was clear Phantom did not want to help Francis at all. Evan smiled sheepishly as he patted a clearly depressed Francis. Phantom studied him for a moment, before groaning.

He bent down and patted Francis on the head. "Look. I'll find some books for you to look through. Pay attention to how the main guy flirts with the heroine. And the answer to the previous question is to steal her for yourself," he told Francis, winking. Getting up, he grabbed Luminous. "Come along now, stuffy pants. We need to get some books for a lovesick novice." Luminous sputtered as he was dragged along, finally yelling something along the lines of "PUT ME DOWN YOU STUPID THIEF STOP MANHANDLING ME!" and so on. Shade sighed.

He turned to the rest, gesturing to outside the office. "I'll follow those two, the books would be destroyed if there's no one taking care of them. I guess Aran and Mercedes can stay behind to help with the writing?" Aran gripped his shoulder, shaking her head. "No can do, S-Eunwol. Let's go!" She picked him up and ran up the staircase, resulting in a yelling from Nineheart. "Don't run in the school corridors!"

In the library, Aran caught up to Phantom and Luminous bickering. Elwin sat at the side, looking quite amused.

"And for the last time, thief, I said no!"

"Come on! It's just a few books, I don't want to teach him! He's hopeless!"

"Then get it yourself, you moron!"

"M-moron?! Says the guy who can't flirt to save his life!"

"There was no need to learn how to flirt! I am perfectly happy with my current life!"

"What life do you even refer to? I'm pretty sure you know zero about romance."

"I know just as well as you do! And I do have a life!"

"Prove it!"

"Fine! At least I know to never make a girl cry!"

"...Luminous." All Phantom could do not to immediately slap his palm against his own face at his utter denseness. "You. Suck. That's the bare minimum, and is applied to all girls. Lania included."

Shade sighed. This was why he didn't want to let them go alone. This happened. All the damn time. He walked up to the two and used his bare hands to ram their heads together. They sat on the floor, dizzy, but finally quiet. Turning to Elwin, who looked a little miffed his entertainment was gone, he bent down. "I trust the other two have already given you the basic background of this mess?"

Elwin nodded. "Here. I got a list of the most popular romance novels. Seems like the Dusties are a sucker for romance. Happy hunting!" Shade grimaced and looked at the list. Five books in total.

He turned to see Aran already at the portal, holding the two idiots apart. "Hmm, I get a feeling of deja vu when I see these two fighting. It's quite amusing!"

Shade laughed. "I know. Those two are like a stand-up comedy act. They are perfect for each other."

Aran shrugged, grinning away. "Hmm, I somehow heard it before, but don't say it in front of them! They will kill you!" Shade shook his head. It still stung, after all this time.

Entering the Dust Zone, they got to work, after Aran slapped the two idiots awake.

Surprisingly, it was quick work. Phantom had gotten two books, while the rest had gotten one each. Phantom kept boasting about it all the way back, until Aran told him to 'stuff it or I'll make you a squishier mage than Luminous!' which promptly shut him up. They quickly changed (Their clothes had a weird smell on them, and each time they sniffed it, a Poisoned icon appeared. Nope.) and hurried down to the office.

"We are baaaack!" Phantom threw open the doors, smiling cheerily. Luminous gave him a dark look, while Shade walked up to Francis and placed the books down. "Here. Romance books." Francis smiled gratefully.

He seemed almost in tears. "Thank you so much! I'll try my best to write the best love letter!" With that, he started to write furiously.

Aran glanced at the time, and shrieked. "Guys! We are late! Oh my god, the meeting is starting in less than a minute! We are going to get killed!" Everyone looked up at the clock, and started to panic. There was a Maple Alliance meeting held today. They immediately bid everyone good bye, and hurried back to Ereve using the Lumiere. They made it five minutes late.

Their version of Nineheart stared at them disapprovingly. "The Heroes are late. I would have expected that from Phantom, but I know the rest of you are better than that. What a disappointment." He turned and walked off, and the others groaned. Death glares from the Cygnus Knights were one thing, but Nineheart?

It was going to be a long day. Francis had it easy.

The next day, the Heroes trudged to school, battered and sore. They were forced to sit through a lecture by Nineheart. They had not slept at all since Nineheart and Claudine, both equally angry and irritated, had asked them for items. They had confirmed the supplies required for preparation against Hilla in the absence of the Heroes during those five minutes, thus deciding to give the latecomers to fetch quests. The Heroes were forced to split into two groups, three helping Claudine fetch more rue from the Verne Mines and three helping Nineheart to fetch information from Azwan and the queen in Ariant for the mysterious gypsy. Mercedes, Evan and Aran had gone ahead to help Claudine, while Phantom, Luminous and Shade helped Nineheart. The first group had taken the entire night hunting for just the right amount of rue before Claudine allowed them to leave. They had been beaten up pretty badly, and Aran had accidentally aggravated one of the guards, resulting in them being booted out. When they finally made it back to Elwin's house, they had collapsed on the floor. Meanwhile, the others had gone to Azwan. They got the information nicely enough, and rushed to Ariant, much to the displeasure of Phantom. There, they requested humbly (no not really, Phantom did try to mock her but Luminous and Shade decided to make him bow on his knees,) for information. She sent them on a wild goose chase, making them hunt rare items for so many times, Phantom was almost tempted to steal away them all. And even then, in the end, just when they had finally obtained her items, the group only returned to find out that the queen had gone to bed. Luminous immediately walked to an area full of monsters and unleashed his pent-up anger. They were forced to wait for the queen to wake up. Shade had suggested they would go to sleep first, but just as he said that, the servant approached them and informed the Heroes that the queen had risen.

Needless to say, they were slightly late as Luminous had to release his anger once more. Even then, the queen was a little irritated at the Heroes, delayed them even more by complaining, her 'woe is me' speech being repeated for almost half an hour. The three Heroes struggled to contain their rage, though Phantom let slipped a single line, "Your Majesty, we cannot keep Nineheart waiting," before she finally stopped after another five minutes and gave them the information. Even then, it was vague, seeing that she only mentioned that a gypsy had told her about the Immortality Elixir and left it at that. The Heroes returned to tell Nineheart, who chided them for taking too long, before finally releasing them.

By then, they were almost an hour late for school.

When they finally entered school, Nineheart had caught them and scolded them for coming so late. By then, Phantom, Aran and Mercedes were almost at the end of their patience. Aran was almost pulling her hair out of her head, while Mercedes looked exhausted, but her fists balled up so tightly, they were white. Phantom's usual grin had been removed, a scowl taking its place. Shade look mildly irritated, while Evan was falling asleep on his feet.

They entered their classes, Aran proceeding to fall straight asleep.

Evan slept in between lessons, before hearing a loud commotion. Looking up with bleary eyes, he saw Stan. He yawned and rubbed his eyes, turning around. "Francis. How did-yawn- I'm sorry, how did the letter go? Did you put it safely?"

Francis nodded, replying, "S-say, Evan, are you okay? You look really tired.. did the evil spirits haunt your dreams? I wish it did for mine, maybe it could have told me how to power up the black dragon in my right arm." Evan shook his head, yawning again, before a loud yell came from Stan. Evan was instantly shocked awake, and he turned back.

"..Absolutely intolerable! The stalker has striked again! Perhaps my first warning did not reach to all of you, including the stalker, but the school will find out who is the culprit behind this! Rest assured, they will be dealt with severely. Suspension is the least of their problems!" Stan was yelling. Evan blinked, before turning back to Francis, who was sweating.

"You didn't sweat and smudged the ink again, did you?" Evan asked. Francis sweated even more.

Stan continued his rant, his face going red. "The teachers are not stupid, you know! I assure you, we will find and crack down on this stalker. They will be expelled once the teachers find out who it is!"

Francis paled. "E-expulsion?"

One student raised his hand. "I don't think it's enough, Mr. Stan. The police should apprehend whoever it is!"

Francis flinched. "P-police?"

Another student nodded. "This is harassment. Let the police deal with this."

Francis let out a sound of pain, squeaking, "H-harassment?! Eek!" He promptly flopped onto the floor, moaning in pain. The students glanced at him. Evan sighed.

"Teacher, Francis fainted again." Stan shook his head, picking up the Doll Maniac. "I'll bring him to the infirmary, the rest of you open your books and study!"

Evan hoped he was alright. He would be, right? It was Francis, after all.

After class, Evan earned a call from an unknown number. Picking it up, he got the biggest shock of his life. Hilla's voice came through. "Hello? You are Evan, right? Francis' friend? I'm the school nurse in this school. Anyway, come up and get your friend. I have an appointment." The phone clicked shut, and Evan sighed. It wasn't like Hilla was going to appear with her zombie skeletons and attack the school. Evan was really tired. He just wanted to sleep right now.

Moving up the staircase, he entered the infirmary. Evan looked around to see Francis sitting on the bed with an ice pack on his head. Evan walked up to him, smiling. "Feeling better, Francis?"

Francis looked up, tears still running from his hidden eyes. "Ah, Evan, my good friend. I'm afraid my time in this world is coming to an end." Evan looked at him with a confused look. He continued. "For you see, I have nothing left to live for. I suffer from an incurable disease, known as lovesickness. It can only be cured with Orchid's recognition of me." He sighed deeply, as if he was on the verge of death. Evan panicked. Grabbing his phone, he sent a message to the Heroes to rush here and please, please please save Francis from dying.

He returned his attention to Francis, who continued his little death speech. "B-but I am not ready to die yet, to return my soul to the evil spirits that have given me this body. I have a mission I have yet to fulfil. I feel like I'm burning up." Evan frowned, grabbing a thermometer and taking Francis' temperature.

He stared at the recorded temperature. "It's only 36.7 degree Celsius, Francis. You don't have a fever." Francis coughed even louder, flopping onto the bed. "I'm going to die… I feel so sick…"

The Heroes came, wondering why Evan looked confused. Once they got a lowdown, they all shook their head. Francis was acting his part really well. They hunted around the infirmary for the medicine, before coming across a certain dog under the bed.

"Psst! Over here!" The Heroes gathered under the next bed to speak to Elwin. "I heard what's up. Francis is fine, at most a bruised finger and ego." Evan scratched his head, still confused, until Elwin told him that no, Francis did not have a hidden fever. Evan looked rather crossed after that.

"But anyway! Just give him some fake medicine. You know, placebo effect! Ah, how do I… the effect of feeling sick even though you are not sick due to your own thoughts. So if you bring him any medicine, he'll feel better right away!" Elwin explained, the others just giving him weird looks. Evan looked rather relieved. "So any medicine would do! Alright!"

Elwin nodded, his tail wagging. "The Dusties I just sealed before the nurse saw took some laxatives with them. Maybe you could give them to Francis?" The Heroes nodded, and rushed into the Dust Zone, though, they had to wonder, why laxatives? Did the Dusties love upset stomachs?

They returned with twenty laxatives, passing it to Evan. He hurried over to Francis' bedside, holding the pills. "Here you go, Francis! These would make you feel better!" Francis smiled and sat up. "You are a good friend, Evan." With that, he took all twenty pills and swallowed them. Evan looked rather shocked. Francis smiled and rubbed his stomach. "I already feel better! Thank you!" The Heroes tried not to gape at the fact Francis took twenty of those medicine, but decided not to question him. Maybe he had a strong stomach.

Francis looked out the window wistfully, as if remembering a long lost love. "Evan, you probably want to know why I fell for Orchid, right? Very well, I shall grace you with my story!" Evan shook his head, wanting to tell Francis that no, he didn't need a story, but Francis ignored him and continued anyway.

 _It was spring, that day._

 _Ever heard of Pygmalion from Greek Mythology?_

 _He didn't care for any real women. His only love was a sculpture. I am similar to him. I only love dolls._

 _I was a modern day Pygmalion. Figurines were my only love, and I never cared for girls. But it changed on the day I saw her. It was the first spring rain then. I saw her there, in the rain._

 _She was standing there, in the rain, crying._

 _My heart was beating so fast, I didn't understand. But then it clicked into place. I had fallen in love. I thought it was punishment from the gods, to fall in love with a real girl, but I took it into my stride. I will reveal my true self! For this day, I shall declare, with the evil spirits around me to be my witnesses, that Orchid is my one true love!_

Evan had fallen asleep during the story, and was woken up by Francis yelling. Looking around, he saw Irena and Oz. Getting up, he nodded to Francis, who seemed entranced by his own memories. Evan walked up to them, just in time to hear Irena say, "Can I punch him now?"

Oz shook her head. "It was kinda intense, and a little gross. I dunno, it sounds like you are pretty sincere, though." Francis seemed to snap out of his trance, refocusing on the group. Evan looked behind Irena to see the rest of them, sitting on the floor, sleeping. Even they fell asleep. Francis coughed, smiling shakily. "I didn't see you there. Ho…?"

Irena glanced at him. "The whole entire time."

Oz sighed. "Francis, no. You should stop! I really don't think you will stand a chance, even after these two days."

"N-no way! Orchid and I are soulmates! Right, Evan?" Francis looked imploringly at Evan, who was away in dreamland. He was shaken out of his dream, and blinked at Francis. "Uh. I think you should continue. I read those books that you used as a reference, and being persistent seems to help?" Francis smiled gratefully.

"It doesn't matter! I shall continue on my quest to win Orchid's heart! This terminal illness of lovesickness, I shall accept it with my entire being!" He announced. Turning to Evan, he spoke. "Evan, my friend. Can you do one final request for this dying student? Can you bring me a picture of my one true love, Orchid?" Evan yawned and nodded, remembering in the dorm room, there was one poster of Orchid. He slowly trudged back to the room, with Mir bumping him back to it.

"M-master! You must wake up! Ah! That was close, there was a pillar there!" Mir directed Evan into the room. Evan looked on top of the closet, staring at the poster. Mir was transformed back, with Evan climbing onto him and flying up to nab it. Getting down, he sat down on the floor and dozed off, while Mir waited for the potion to work again. Once he was back to being a dog, he nudged Evan awake and the two journeyed back into school.

He passed the poster to Francis, who immediately yelled. "No, not a poster! I already have this one! No, no, no, Evan! I wanted a real picture of her! Taken with your camera! Not a poster!"

Irena folded her arms, irritated. "You are getting a little demanding, Francis."

Oz seemed to be as pissed, requesting permission to hit him. Francis trembled in his bed, but remained stubborn. "It is the only thing that can save me now, Evan!"

Evan groaned softly. Walking to the pile of Heroes, he shook them awake. Evan really doubted he would be able to do this on his own, especially with his lack of energy.

The Heroes got up, shaking Mercedes and Aran awake. Once told of their mission, each Hero trooped down to the cafeteria, grabbing a cup of coffee. Once they were wide awake, they went to Orchid's classroom. Cassandra told them that Orchid had just left. Annoyed, they ran down to the front porch to see Orchid talking to her manager.

Everyone whipped out their phone. They raised it up, focusing on Orchid. Only Aran was fumbling with the device, until Mercedes helped pressed the button. They each took one picture. When they looked at their masterpiece, everyone was not happy.

Aran's was a complete blur.

Mercedes had only captured the lower half of her body.

Shade's only had the top of her head at her manager.

Luminous' hands kept shaking, so he couldn't get a clear picture.

Evan's was too blur.

Phantom's was out of focus and Orchid wasn't even in the picture.

They glared at him. He shrugged.

Orchid started to move, and the Heroes chased after, grumbling a little. Luminous complained, "Why do we have to do his chasing now?" Evan turned back, pouting. "We have to save him, somehow, from his lovesickness!" The Heroes immediately shut up.

There! She was standing near the bus stop! Everyone raised their phones again, taking another shot.

Once again, Aran's was completely blur. Mercedes took many photos, but they were all bits and pieces of Orchid. Shade's was blocked by a passerby. Evan could not focus. Luminous had given up. Phantom tried, he really did, or so he said, but he could not seem to focus on Orchid's face. Instead, it took her hair.

They cursed underneath their breaths. Orchid started to move again, getting onto the bus. As the bus started, each Hero grabbed the back of the bus, hauling themselves up onto the bus. As it rode, they were careful of signs and bridges, though Aran was almost flung off the moving vehicle once.

When they saw Orchid get off, they quickly got off and hid. They followed her, but Orchid disappeared. Looking around, they heard faint meowing. Oh, Lily.

Bending down, they poked the cat. Shade quickly pushed their hands away, instead stroking Lily. "Have you seen Orchid?"

Lily nodded, though she looked worried. "Her emotions are going out of control. Monsters are coming in from all over the place! She went over there. Maybe you should clear those up first." Everyone nodded, and entered the Dust Zone.

They punched and fought against the Dusties, resulting in their clothes being more tattered. Holes were torn, Aran managed to have her sock soaked with blood. As they fought, they started to move slower. This was tiring. They wanted to sleep. So sleepy…

They suddenly sat up, when Phantom gave everyone a Heal. He looked as tired as they were, but he was still moving forward. Shade frowned. "Phantom. Is everything alright?" Phantom shook his head. "No. Why would it be. I'm helping a goddamn Black Wings Commander. How can it be alright? But we can't possibly stop now, can we?" He continued to move, while Shade gave a sigh. No one wanted to help Francis of all people, other than Evan, but even then, for him to have unrequited love, it was a tragedy indeed. All the Heroes were big saps, seeing that even a brief romance was enough to escape from the terrors of the Black Mage. Not to mention Phantom had lost his only love.

Saps, all of them.

They pushed on, finally making it to the end. Bloody, worn out and almost collapsing, they passed around potions. At the end, they found Orchid sitting on the bench. Good.

They took out their phones, and snapped one final picture each. Everyone's came out in pretty good quality, and they turned to escape. An exclamation mark appeared on Phantom's head, and he immediately jumped onto everyone, pushing them into the bush. Unfortunately, he missed one person.

Shade dodged out of the way just in time as Phantom collided with everyone head on, all tumbling into the bushes except for him. Shade looked confused, turning around. "Uh, Phantom? What's going o-"

"Hold it right there, stalker. Where do you think you are going?"

Shade froze. Turning around slowly, he saw Orchid approaching him. Wait, was that why Phantom pushed everyone into the bushes?! Shade wanted to curl up and hide. He dodged out of the only escape he had. Orchid came right up to him, smirking. "I've been wondering who would be the person stalking me. Looks like it was you after all, Eunwol. And here I thought you were just someone really quiet in class." She laughed, waving it off.

Shade raised his hands up, slowly backing away. "N-no. I-It isn't me, Orchid. You have the wron-"

She ignored Shade, continuing to speak. "Don't pretend it wasn't you, Eunwol. I know it's been you all along. You also left me flowers in my lockers, placed food and drinks in my dressing rooms, and cleaned my chair and desk in school, right?"

Shade frowned, tilting his head. He could a audible clap, and wanted to do the same. Each of the Heroes hidden in the bushes groaned softly, so as to not get the attention of Orchid. Evan shook his head. "Francis..You really had it bad for her, didn't you?"

Orchid tossed her hair behind her head, smiling smugly. "I know what you actually wrote in the letters. I'm not stupid, after all, Eunwol. I could see your message, underneath all the smudges." She smirked, before her face changed.

She looked down, her smile disappearing. Fidgeting a little, she made a request to Shade in a low voice, "Could you… just listen to me for a bit?" Shade's eyes widened, before nodding. The Heroes in the bushes shooed him to follow Orchid, while they themselves tagged along in the shadows, with the help of Phantom's guidance.

They soon found themselves in Sunset Yard once again. Orchid stopped at the playground, sighing, "I like it here. It's peaceful and quiet. Noisy places take a lot out of me, I usually get so tired. Everywhere I go, people are screaming or crying my name." Orchid walked forward, settling on the swing. Waving her hand at Shade, she gestured towards the swing next to her. Shade hesitated, before Lily nudged him. Shade turned, whispering to the cat, "Why am I in this awkward situation?"

Lily shrugged. "I think she wants to tell you something. So you better listen well, Shade." Shade looked somewhat shocked, but quickly walked up to Orchid and sat down next to her. Her face took on a depressed expression, her eyes staring at the floor as she swung.

"This was where my brother got into an accident." She began, before her voice caught in her throat. She paused for a moment, before continuing. "I usually come here when I feel like crying." Orchid stopped, with Shade immediately focusing on her. If she cried, he wouldn't know what to do. Orchid shook her head, before raising her head.

"He collapsed here, three years ago. It was so sudden." Orchid continued. Lily leaned onto Shade and whispered, "I didn't expect her to confide in you!" Shade shook his head, mouthing, "Neither did I."

The Heroes in the bushes strained their ears to hear the conversation, eavesdropping on the conversation. Aran almost ran out just to get the mushy atmosphere, but the Heroes barely stopped her. Shade shot them a glare, before continuing to listen to Orchid. She looked at him, her eyes downcast.

"My brother Lotus was always popular with the girls, and they treated me nicely. They wanted to use me to to get near him. Or his attention, at least. After his accident, they showed their true colors. They excluded me, talked about me behind my back and even harassed me! They...They said they didn't like me at all." she exclaimed. Shade pressed his lips together, remaining silent as Orchid continued to rant about her life. Orchid must have been lonely, Shade knew how it was like. To be excluded, that is. It wasn't a new feeling to him, but surely it was better than being forgotten. Not that Shade would want to wish either fate on anyone.

Orchid smiled sadly. "I put on a brave face, but I was really scared and lonely. I didn't know what to do." A fake hollow laugh came, and she chuckled. "After I appeared on television, those girls wanted to be friends with me again. I realized that no one truly cared about anyone else. They only act friendly when they want something. The same can be said for the rest of the school. Everyone acts friendly, but behind my back, they talk. A lot." Orchid started to swing a little harder, her legs now no longer dragging on the sand. She stopped, before staring at Shade in the eye.

"I'm sure you are one of them."

Shade's gaze soften. She was just lonely, wasn't she? It didn't help that she had the Black Wings' Commander's face, but she was just an ordinary girl with problems in school. And… Shade could not help but feel pity for her.

"That's not true, Orchid. Some of us like you for who you are, not because of what you are." Shade spoke gently. He smiled slightly, reaching out to grasp her hand.

A soft sound of retching could be heard, though it was quickly hushed up. Shade could imagine Phantom grimacing at the scene before him. He was, after all, the one in the Heroes that hated Orchid and Lotus the most. Well, he had better learn that Orchid and Lotus are different here. Just because they have the same face doesn't mean they have the same attitude and behavior.

Orchid stared at him, her eyes brightening a little. "Really? So if I'm famous, you wouldn't care?"

"Really. I wouldn't care if you are famous or not. And I really doubt those who like you for who you are don't either. After all, we all cry, have these emotions, don't we?" Shade smiled, his eyes crinkling. Though, Francis was a little off in the head. Well, if they get together, it would be really sweet.

Orchid seemed to keep staring at him, and Shade was just about to release her hand and escaped when she removed it herself, getting up from the swing. Snorting, she turned to face him. "You are lying, aren't you?" Shade seemed a little shocked, dumbfounded. She walked off, before stopping. "Aren't you coming? We have to go back, don't we?" Shade immediately got up and rushed after her. The Heroes, finally out from their cramped spot, tumbled after.

On the bus, Shade could vaguely hear the loud thumping on the top of the bus. He hoped they were all alright. He wondered what was going on.

Meanwhile, the rest of them on the bus were having an impromptu combat training of dodging. Phantom had it easy, barely missing the top of the bridge and traffic lights. The rest, not so much. Aran and Luminous almost fell of the bus, while Evan took to crouching and clinging onto the bus. Mercedes kept the bus as a moving platform, jumping and rushing over the overhead bridges. It was not a good day for combat training.

Shade found himself imagining the amusing scene of everyone dancing above the bus in order to prevent themselves from being hit, before his daydream was broken apart by Orchid speaking. "You listened to me today, so I feel rather gra- never mind." Shade turned and frowned at her, confused. What was she trying to say again? She turned away, before pointing to her phone. "Gimme your number." Shade stared at her, a wordless 'why' floating in the air.

She huffed, her face glowing red. Shade wondered what was it and people when asking him about something personal. Lang's face turned red too. Orchid stuttered a little, before folding her arms and pouting. "So that I can contact you when I am in the mood to stalk, Stalker!" Shade sputtered, before sighing deeply. Was this how she saw him as now? He hoped that Nineheart doesn't catch wind of this, or he would die.

Though, Shade was a little confused. He accidentally made friends with Orchid, of all people. Well, not that more friends are bad, but he hoped she didn't forget him, like the Heroes and the Pointy-Ear Village. Now that the curse was gradually going away, everyone was starting to remember him again.

He started to hear whispering, and he turned to see some boys from hi- Shinsoo International. When was he starting to see Shinsoo International School as his school? Oh dear.

Orchid grumbled, glaring at them. "This is why I don't take public transport. I'm getting off. And don't follow me, stalker." She turned and walked towards the front of the bus. She stopped, a little dazed. Shade reached out to tell her where to go, when Orchid rushed past him to the door. Confused, Shade stood there, until he got to the bus stop outside of school.

There, he found the rest of the Heroes. Evan looked especially happy. "You are a really good listener, Shade! Lily said that since you talked to her, she had calmed down, so the negative energy was removed." Shade smiled and ruffled Evan's hair. "Good to know, Evan."

He looked up to the other Heroes, who grinned. Aran hooked her arm around him and ruffled his head, laughing. "So someone got it bad for our Shade here, huh?" Shade coughed, looking up puzzled. The rest of the Heroes seemed to have cheeky smiles on their faces. Mercedes coughed, smiling. "N-no, nothing, Shade. Just, ah, you two go well together, you know?" Shade shook his head, untangling himself from Aran's chokehold.

"I don't see how we go well together." Shade folded his arms. Evan just giggled while Luminous gave a huff, though he looked amused. Phantom just shrugged, before patting Shade on the shoulder. "Don't you worry, Shade. If you ever need any advice relating to the ladies, you can ask me or Mercedes. We'll help you out any time you want." He winked at Shade, who looked even more confused. The Heroes nodded, before they rushed back into the wardrobe to continue their beauty rest.

The next day, everyone gathered at the wardrobe in the morning, avoiding Nineheart's request for them to appear. Evan laughed out loud, finally, before pointing to the school. "Francis is waiting for us. Let's go!" The Heroes, hyper after that sweet scene, rushed to the school.

In the infirmary, Francis was given six photos of Orchid. He seemed so happy. "This is, Orchid in the rain! It's priceless! Incredible!" The Heroes just exchanged glances, before laughing. They gave to everyone fist bumps, though it turned out to be more of a punching match between Luminous and Phantom, to which Shade separated them. Oz crept up to Shade and asked, "So, uh, Eunwol. I heard you were talking to Orchid on the bus yesterday? How did you get so close to her?" Shade just smiled tiredly. The Heroes just kept asking him about the same thing. "Well, you know…" He told Oz everything, and the Heroes just stood there with cheeky smiles on their face.

Irena nodded. "That was a really serious topic. So you accidentally became friends with her?"

Shade nodded, while Oz put in her opinion. "I thought she was temperamental, but now I know that she has a reason. She's actually a lonely person."

Irena nodded. "I still don't really like her, but at least I understand her a little better." Shade shrugged. He didn't really understand, but at least, with the others being a little more understanding towards her, perhaps Orchid would open up. Just like he did with Freud. He could only hope so.

Some mumbling could be heard from Francis, but with Evan's face going pale, no one wanted to know what he said. Nope. As creepy Francis is in their world, they did not want to know the inner workings for the Puppet Master, not even from his doppelganger.

Irena and Oz seemed to have heard it, with Irena sighing, "At least, you know you are helpless." Oz giggled. "Too slow!"

Francis seemed a little more determined, with him suddenly yelling out, "I have decided! I will do anything to comfort her lonely heart. I will confess!"

Everyone seemed taken aback. Confess his love already? That was quick! A rare grin flicked across Shade's face, and he nodded. "I'm sure she's going to be happy. Perhaps someone by her side would be nice." Francis seemed to be even more happy, when Shade spoke. Evan smiled and patted Francis on his hand. "Good luck, Francis! I'll be cheering for you!"

Francis nodded, before handing a letter to Evan. "Evan, I have already written this letter before you came. Could you do me a favor and give it to Orchid?" Evan shook his head.

"Why don't you give it to her yourself?" Evan asked, curious. Francis froze, before his face turned slightly red. "I don't want my sweaty palms to ruin this letter. Could you send her my love? I will waiting on the rooftop, with my fingers crossed." Evan folded his arms, thinking, before smiling.

"S- Eunwol? Do you mind? I… You are the one closest to her, perhaps she wouldn't even notice me." Evan smiled pleadingly at Shade, who seemed shocked. Frozen solid, Shade could only stare at the cute, pleading face of the Dragon Master. He played his weapons well. None of the Heroes could not resist his face, and Evan knew it. Shade finally gave in.

"Alright." He took the letter from Evan, and moved downstairs, while the other Heroes rushed Francis up to the roof and took their hiding spots.

Shade went into the classroom, looking around. Orchid was nowhere to be seen. He walked up to Cassandra. "Cassandra, have you seen Orchid?" Cassandra gave him a strange look, before shaking her head.

"No. I think she went up to the music room. Why? She doesn't really like people following during break, though. She looked tired." Cassandra replied. Eyeing Shade suspiciously, she asked, "Why, though?"

"I have something to pass to her. Thank you for the information, though." Bowing a little, Shade turned and left the classroom, heading to the music room. Knocking on the door, he entered in to see Orchid. She turned to see who had came in, a panicked expression on her face, before it softened. Immediately, she seemed to stood straight up, the usual smug expression on her face. "I wondered who came in. So it was you, Stalker."

Shade sighed. "I'm not your stalker, Orchid. Oh, yes. I have something to tell you." Orchid looked surprised, before shrugging. "Is it your turn to spill something?"

Shade looked up, confused. What was did she think he was going to say? "No. Here. This is the final letter from your actual stalker, Orchid. He is waiting on the rooftop for you."

Orchid's face flushed. "What? Wait, did you decide not to pretend any more? We only talked yesterday, and suddenly you are so confident. I know I'm pretty, cute and charming, but…" Shade pressed the letter into her hands, before taking a step back.

He wanted to leave, but Orchid seemed to babble on. "We have just met and this is kinda too sudden! I need to think about this… Not that I have any feelings for you or anything! Just saying…" Shade frowned and tilted his head.

"What are you talking about? This is from a first grader, Francis." explained Shade. Orchid fell silent, and her face turned dark. Shade felt a sense of danger. He shivered, rushing to the door. "Good bye."

Once outside the door, he rushed to the side and grabbed his ringing phone. It was Oz. Picking it up, he pressed it to his ear. "Yes? Eunwol speaking."

Oz piped up from the other end. "Eunwol? Did you give the letter to Orchid?"

"Yes. Is Francis ready?"

"Sure is! Quickly, come up here! He's gonna get rejected, but who knows? Maybe Orchid might accept him. Aren't you curious? The rest of your friends are here too." Oz piped up. A giggle escaped her lips. "We can't miss this! Come on up!"

Shade put away the phone when Oz cut off, before rushing up to the rooftop.

Soon, Orchid arrived as well. The Heroes, Irena and Oz were hidden, their eyes focused on the spectacle before them.

She noticed Francis, who was fidgeting away. "Are you Francis?"

Francis nodded frantically. "Yes, I am."

Behind the Heroes, Irena sighed. "That fool. I can hear his voice trembling." Oz shook her head. "He already forgot what we taught him. I do hope he's gonna be alright." Aran yawned and frowned. "If he's gonna be nervous, how is he gonna live up to Orchid? I mean, doesn't she have fans all around her? If they don't like Francis, he's gonna be crushed or something!"

Mercedes whacked Aran lightly on the head. "Hush! Do not jinx him, Aran! Unless you want to be the crusher?" Aran waved her hands no, but still grinning away. "Just saying, Mercedes. And why would I want to crush Francis again?"

Oz and Irena stared at Aran, who didn't seem to notice. Mercedes, however, did. "Aran! Crushing him in games doesn't count, not one bit!" Aran looked dumbfounded, before shaking her head. "What are you talk- Mmph!" Mercedes had slapped her hand on Aran's mouth. "Look! Francis is going to confess!" Successful diversion!

Orchid was the first to break the awkward silence. "What do you want?" Her tone was icy cold, just like how she spoke to the others. But something else was off. No one knew why, but Orchid… sounded irritated. Angry.

Francis gulped, before beginning. "Did you read my letter?"

Orchid shrugged, as if she didn't care about anything Francis said. "No. I threw it away." Francis seemed stunned. He didn't seem nervous, but instead, hurt and shocked. "What?! W-Why?"

Orchid sighed, an irritated expression revealing itself on her face. "Why? Let me make this clear, alright? I am not interested in dating anyone. So give up."

Francis, stunned, seemed to be unable to form words. "W- B-but…"

Orchid turned away, flicking her hair over her shoulder. "That's my answer. Bye."

Francis called out at the last moment, stopping Orchid in her tracks. Turning around, she cocked her head at him. Francis took a deep breath. "W-Why aren't you interested in dating anyone?"

Orchid let out a snort, shaking her head. "Is it not obvious?" She sighed, continuing. "You just think you like me because I'm a star, just like the others."

Francis suddenly burst out, just as she said that. "No! I don't like you because you are a star or anything!" He took a deep breath, calming himself. "When I first saw you, I didn't know who you were. You were crying in the rain. You looked lonely." Francis seemed to be standing straighter, seeming more sincere. "To me, you aren't a TV star or the most popular girl in school. You are just a girl who feels terribly lonely inside." He shifted around a little, still nervous. The Heroes were almost falling out of their hiding places. Evan was trembling himself. "Go, Francis! You can do it!" He whispered. Shade pressed his lips together to keep himself from rushing out there and telling Orchid to just get together with him. He didn't like Orchid for her fame. Wasn't that a good thing? Francis loved her too. This was a golden opportunity for her to get someone that didn't care about her fame.

Orchid fell silent, staring at Francis. "I don't look like much, but my feelings are sincere. I care about you more than anyone else in the world." Francis continued, his hands curled into fists.

She finally spoke, though, it was as if she hadn't believed Francis. "You care about me." It sounded more like a statement than a question.

Francis smiled, though it was shaky. "So why not give it a try? I would really love to go out with you. If you give me a place in your heart, I'll keep the rest of it warm. I swear it on everything I have. I'll save you, from your loneliness."

Orchid stared straight at Francis, so hard that he started to fidget again. Irena and Phantom twitched. "Ugh, I can't help but cringe." Oz patted Irena, a sympathic look on her face. "It's corny, but I have to give it to him. He tried."

Phantom rolled his eyes. "It's cheesy, and rather ineffective on most girls who aren't charmed. I feel the shiver." Luminous glares at Irena before landing a swift punch to Phantom. "He's trying his best, so shut up, you sleazebag." Phantom forced a smile on his face, rubbing his cheek. "Says the person who doesn't have a life even if it meant something." Shade groans softly, before sneaking up on the two quietly and slammed their heads against each other. Both passed out, again. Peace and quiet, finally.

Irena looked somewhat unnerved. "Y-yes, he is trying. It sounds sincere." Oz nodded rapidly by her side. "Yeah! Maybe he stands a chance! Eheheh…" She edged away from Shade, who shot her a quizzical look.

Francis smiled shakily. "You don't have to answer me now. Whenever you make up your mind…"

"Nope."

Orchid's answer slapped everyone in the face. What? She rejected Francis even after that?! Shade moved back a little. Why would she pass up such a chance? The two who passed out sat up, rubbing their foreheads. "What happened?" Luminous looked to Mercedes, who was stunned as well. Aran answered him. "Orchid rejected Francis."

"Oh. I suppose that was to be expected." Luminous got up, dusting his robes. "We can go now?" Phantom glared at him, before shaking his head. "Seems like Lumibutt doesn't have a warm, beating heart. And here I thought he wasn't frozen at all." Luminous glared at Phantom, and was just about to slap the Master Thief when Mercedes hushed the two. "Orchid is speaking!"

Orchid twirled her hair in her hand, as if disinterested. "You are too ugly." Francis was shocked to the ground, his mouth opened and closed like a goldfish. Orchid continued, "You are too short, too." She frowned at him, shaking her head. Francis opened his mouth to defend himself, but Orchid ignored him. "You also have short legs." Francis faltered, before finally speaking in a low voice. "I thought you hated people who liked you because of how you look." Orchid shook her head at Francis.

"Not just that, Francis. I don't need to be saved. What I need is someone who listens. Why do you think I am lonely? Because everyone throws themselves at me. What I need is a friend. Not someone who thinks they can save me. Not to mention, I care about looks as well. I like tall, handsome, sensitive men."

Francis fell silent, and Orchid sighed. "If you had just talked to me, maybe I would have considered you, as a friend. But this isn't what I need. Good bye." She turned and walked away. Francis stood there for a moment, before flopping onto the ground.

Irena flinched. "That? That was brutal. Ouch." Oz nodded. "She has a point though. I don't want to make Francis more miserable, so Evan, can you help him out?"

Evan sighed, nodding. Him and Mir ran out of their hiding spot and rushed to Francis' side. Meanwhile, Shade felt a faint vibrating on his phone. Taking it out, he frowned. A message from Orchid.

[I hate you and don't talk to me again!]

Shade blinked at it and placed it away. Orchid… she shouldn't push people away like that. Oh well. Perhaps in the future, she would open up. For now, though, Shade would honor her wishes. Not that it was going to be difficult, he was perfectly fine with it.

Evan bent down to Francis, patting his head. "You okay, Francis? You did your best."

Francis moaned a little. "No, I will… never be okay… This wound… I will not heal…" He started to giggle, with Evan backing away. Evan appeared scared, and prepared to undo the spell on Mir. This energy… Francis seemed to speak, under a trance. "The darkness is engulfing me…" Evan laughed nervously, his smile twitching. "Y-You are talking nonsense again, Francis..eheheh…" Mir sniffed the air, before his eyes turned to slits. "Be careful, Master. Negative energy is surging around here!"

He heard a sound, and Evan flinched. It was Elwin, thank Transcendents. "Look out, Evan! A big one is coming!"

Evan gulped, and lo and behold, the Heartbroken Troublemaker appeared. "Urgh, here it comes! You think you can take care of it, Evan?" Evan nodded. Elwin smiled. "Counting on you then, Dragon Master! The rest are getting Oz and Irena away." Evan nodded and removed the transformation spell on Mir. The large dragon stretched his wings and flew up, glad to be away from the ground.

True enough, Phantom and Luminous had been the first to distract the girls. Phantom attracted Oz by performing a magic trick, to which she seemed curious about the secret. Luminous just turned Irena around. A shout of protest from Irena, before Shade slammed the girls' heads together, knocking them both out. Phantom picked up Oz and Mercedes took Irena. Both hopped over the fence back down to safety. Luminous teleported down to make sure Lily got the message to wipe their memories of being knocked out. Shade turned to call Aran to go, but he wasn't expecting something.

Evan had been using Dragon Thrust against the Troublemaker. It wasn't effective, with the Troublemaker having an immunity against knockback. Evan had switched the using Ice Breath then, though it wasn't effective. Evan was just about to switch to another skill, when he heard a war cry. Uh oh.

Aran appeared from behind the Troublemaker, her body and Maha covering the sun. Slamming the weapon into the Troublemaker's head, Aran grinned. The Troublemaker made to attack her, but Aran defended with Maha.

"I did call dibs on this one! Let's go, Evan!" Waving to Evan cheerfully, she ran for the Troublemaker again, swinging Maha and striking the monster. Evan nodded, pulling up his Dragon Tome.

"We can do this, Mir!" Waving his wand, he called out, " _Phantom Imprint!_ " The Troublemaker got cursed, and with Aran's each attack, got more damage. Evan smiled, before waving his wand once more. With Aran's ice attacks, this should do more damage. The Troublemaker was frozen.

" _Blaze!_ " Evan called out, and Mir struck the Troublemaker. It was stunned, and Evan kept attacking it. Aran yelled out her own war cry and swung Maha. Once. Twice. The Troublemaker was unfrozen and was no longer stunned. It turned to attack Evan, but it didn't get the chance to. Just as it reached the little Dragon Master, who was busy drinking potions, a large weapon landed on its head, and cleaved it in half. It froze, before swirling around and around, disappearing for good. Evan looked up to see Aran. She seemed very pleased with herself. Walking over to Evan, she ruffled his hair. "Good job, kiddo. We got some nice experience points, that's for sure."

Evan smiled brightly at Aran, before rushing to Francis. Poking the green-haired boy, he heard a snore. "That's a loud pig if I ever heard one! No one in Rien snores that loudly." Aran laughed. Evan just laughed. Didn't Mercedes say once that Aran snored louder than a grumpy boar? Evan decided not to mention it.

Shade was gaping as Aran walked back up to him. "Alley-oop! Time to go back to class!" She ran down the staircase, leaving Evan alone on the rooftop.

He sighed. Lilin patted his leg. "He's asleep. Don't worry. Just bring him to the infirmary." Evan smiled and nodded. "I'm just sad that Francis didn't get a good ending, after all his effort." Elwin shook his head. "Unrequited love is a painful thing, both in this world and ours." With that, Evan transformed Mir back and picked up Francis, depositing him in the infirmary. He returned to class, a little sad that it didn't turn out as Francis expected.

After school, he received a call from Oz. "Evan? We are in the infirmary. Francis passed out from being rejected, but he's fine now. Do you think you could come?" Evan breathed a sigh of relief, smiling down at Mir. Mir licked his ankle, and Evan replied Oz, "Yeah. I'm coming." He could hear Oz chattering excitedly. "He could really use a friend right now, so hurry!" Evan cut off the call, before rushing into the infirmary.

Entering the room, he pushed the door shut and rushed up to Francis. Hawkeye, Cygnus, Irena and Oz were there too. Evan looked at Francis. He seemed dejected. When he finally noticed Evan, he managed a weak smile. "Hey, Evan. I guess… I guess I failed at love."

Oz patted Francis on the back. "She just wasn't meant to be. That's all, right?" Irena smiled kindly at the boy. "Cheer up. You were at least sincere." Hawkeye have a sympathetic look. "Buck up! There's plenty of fish in the sea, you just have to find the right one! You can trust me, I've been through this many times!" Cygnus nodded. "It was short, but it was intense love nonetheless. Don't worry about it, Francis. You did your best."

Irena sighed. "The faster you forget, the better. Especially when you have been rejected multiple times. Don't follow her anymore, not like your friend there." She gestured to the door, where a familiar pompadour could be seen. But Francis shook his head. "No. I'm not giving up."

Everyone stared at him. Did he mature?! Francis continued, "What matters is my will. My will to be with her whatever it takes. I can't let go of my dream. If I do, what does that make me?"

Everyone was shocked at his words. Evan smiled widely. He learnt something. Francis learnt and grew from his mistake. He had never felt so proud to be Francis' best friend.

Irena smiled and nodded. "You sound like a man." Hawkeye laughed and grinned. "What doesn't kill makes you stronger, am I right? Of course I'm right! Yes, you shouldn't give up!"

Cygnus smiled, relieved. "I'm glad you came up with a healthy solution, Francis."

Francis chuckled, though, Evan noted it wasn't because of the praise. Francis was hiding something behind his back. "Of course… That's why I have… THIS!" He pulled out a doll behind his back. It had twin ponytails, looking just like a rabbit… WAIT!

Evan felt a shiver run up his spine.

Francis was holding onto the Orchid doll, the one often seen in the Puppet Master's hideout.

Oh Transcendents. Please help him.

The rest seemed to react accordingly. Oz spoke up first. "Is that… a Orchid doll?"

Francis chuckled. "Dolls never betray me. I should have done this from the start. Real women are hypocrites. Dolls aren't like them. Real women don't like short men. Dolls don't care. Dolls… Dolls are for me." He chuckled darkly, and everyone shivered.

"Is that your solution?! To be with an Orchid doll?!" Oz cried out.

Francis nodded. "Of course. I'm going to bring her out to theme parks, dates, movies and other stuff. I'm damaged now, kuhuhuhuhu…"

Evan felt a sense of failure, as he watched the scene. Francis… Oz seemed to feel the same, when she turned to face the others.

"Is this how it is suppose to end? Something doesn't feel right." She stared at the others for some confirmation. Irena sighed and shrugged. "Leave him be. He's happy."

Cygnus shook her head, tears forming on her eyes. "What a sad ending…" Hawkeye looked depressed as well, his head hanging. "Unrequited love… It is a sad thing." Evan felt himself sweating at this scene.

"You guys… are giving up on Francis, aren't you?"

Evan wished himself to fall into a hole. He fell to his knees, as Francis' laughter pierced the air.

Back in the reading room, the witness to this entire thing stifled a laugh. Closing his book, he got up. Perhaps he was abusing his power in the school, but this was important as well. A couple more videos saved into his phone, but removed from the cameras of the school. He sent them to his computer, back to where he resided.

This incident… was a tad funny. But that wasn't the point. He could see all their patterns when fighting. He could see the girls getting their memories wiped by the cat. He made special note about the cat. Whoever it was underneath that disguise, they were dangerous.

He opened and exited the reading room. Leaving the school, he turned and looked up to the infirmary once more. He didn't want to see Evan's disappointed face, but he had to do this. From what he gathered, Evan was barely twelve. At most fourteen. He shouldn't be exposed to this. The witness murmured an apology to the child, before leaving the school.


	6. Chapter 2 Intermission

Hello again, K signing in!

I'm so sorry for the long wait, I'm having my exams soon, so this chapter was delayed. And yes, it's another intermission. But don't worry, Hilla and Magnus are already being written. However, due to the long exam period that's coming up, perhaps it would take longer. I'm pushing to see if I can make it before I start, anyway. Do remember to pop by and leave a review, I do look forward to seeing them. They do help me improve on this story!

That said, I do hope you enjoy reading this chapter, as I have. Once again, MapleStory belongs to Nexon. Have fun Mapling!

* * *

Strange as it was, the Heroes found themselves thinking more and more about school. Maybe it was the fact that they all had their childhoods ripped away. Or didn't have a childhood at all. Elwin didn't see the Heroes return to Maple World, so he entered the dorms as a dog, only to find the Heroes sitting on the floor just outside the closet in casual clothes. Books were flipped open, and markings were made all over the place on the pages. The room was quiet, save for breathing. Occasional questions were shot across the group, then pages were flipped quickly. Once the Heroes found the answer, they would scramble to note it down. Once they were done, each book was tossed aside as the Heroes threw on their battle gear and rushed past Elwin into the Maple World, each calling a greeting to the confused dog.

Elwin followed them as a dog, only to find Lily sitting upon a tree branch at their destination. Beckoning to Elwin, she flipped open a book. Elwin turned back into human and scrambled up the tree.

With a clear voice, Lily asked, "Portugal's capital?"

Hands shot in the air, with Lily picking Evan, whose tiny arms were waving around frantically. Evan smiled widely. "Lisbon!" Lily nodded, and he turned to the other five. Raising his wand, he called out Dragon Thrust, slamming into all five and pushing them back.

Lily continued, "What's the integral of cosine x?"

This time Luminous yelled out as he moved, dodging any attacks that came his way. "Sine X!" With that, everyone was hit once by a large dark spear. Elwin blinked.

Turning to Lily, he inquired, "So, uh, what's going on?" Lily sighed at Elwin's cluelessness. "Combat training and studying. Their test are coming soon." Elwin just stared. Couldn't Lily just tweak their scores? Lily seemed to read his mind, for she answered, "And I'm not helping them. I've been using my powers a little too much, and Grendel says I can't use them for a while. Which means I'm on break. And that means I can't manipulate their scores." Lily paused, flipping the page, and called out another question. Aran answered, though she got it wrong. All other five heroes jumped on her, attacking her with everything they got. At this point, they attacked as they answered. Lily was testing their theory.

This went on for about an hour, until all the Heroes were worn down. Panting, they got ready for another Alliance meeting. Elwin just cocked his head. Talk about intense studying. He followed the Heroes as a dog, remaining hidden in Ereve. The Heroes arrived at the Alliance meeting out of breath. Taking their seats in the assembly, they all relaxed on their seats. The meeting started, with each area relaying the current situation of their areas.

Everything was alright in both Ereve and Edelstein. Victoria Island was also at peace. Aran reported Rien being normal, other than in the Riena Straits, where explorers are working to remove the Black Wings. Mercedes relayed that Elluel is still frozen, though the ice has been melting. It was all going nicely, until Aran dropped a bomb.

"So, since recently the activity of dark magic is high in Henesys, we'll take care of it. Since we are busy there and all." Nineheart raised an eyebrow, staring at Aran. "What do you mean by that? Henesys is meant for beginners, no?"

Aran nodded, and opened her mouth to explained when Luminous slapped a hand across her mouth. "Nothing, Nineheart. Just, ah, some trouble in Henesys, that is all." Nineheart frowned. "What trouble do you speak of? Do you require assistance?"

Evan immediately shook his head, jumping to add on. "Uh, just some trouble in Utah's farm, that's it!" Claudine stared at Evan strangely. "I do hope you aren't putting your family matters first, Evan. So far, the produce from Utah has been alright. Athena, do you know of their activity?" They all turned to stare at Athena, who shook her head. "That reminds me. I wanted to know what you were all doing in Henesys. I have seen quite the light show just before I came here. Care to explain?" The Heroes were visibly sweating, with Mercedes pinching Aran for blurting out their activities. Shade got up. "Nothing much, H-Athena. Just some training."

Aran ripped away Luminous' hand, as if to patch up her mistake. "Yeah! Just factorizing, you know?" Everyone stated at Aran. Elwin, hidden, groaned and buried his head in his paws. They were giving too much away?

Cygnus, who had not spoken during the meeting, finally spoke up. "Heroes. We don't appreciate secrets among us. If it is important, tell us immediately." Silence. The atmosphere was heavy. Finally, Phantom who was lounging on a chair, explained, with complete ease, "That's a new combo for Aran, Empress. Nothing big, just some old-fashioned combat training we used to do back then. The things you heard, Athena, were macro names. And we were doing some training on Utah's farm seeing that we can't exactly train in the mushroom hunting grounds, can we? You probably saw the last phase, where we moved from place to place attacking one another. I hope this clears everything up?" He smiled, and the rest of the Heroes stood stock still. If their accomplished liar wasn't going to get past Cygnus, they were in deep trouble.

Athena shook her head. "I don't remember..." Mercedes cut in, before Athena said anything else. "We didn't do it with you around, Athena. It's a free for all." Confusion washed over Athena's face, but she didn't question Mercedes. Nineheart and Claudine looked questioningly at the rest, who modded vigorously. Cygnus smiled at Nineheart. "I'm sure it's only training. After all, the Heroes did have their power drained when they woke up. And maybe it is a little more comfortable for them to train among themselves, unlike the newer methods." Nineheart grimaced. Claudine sighed. She seemed to accept the lie, while Nineheart was still suspicious. After a short while, he gave in. "Fine. But don't do this sort of thing where the beginners are. Go to Temple of Time, perhaps. We cannot risk anyone getting hurt." The Heroes nodded, afraid to say anything else.

Cygnus got up from her seat, a serene expression on her face. "I trust the meeting is adjourned?" When everyone nodded, the people parted. The Heroes rushed back to the Lumiere, all collapsing out of relief. Elwin scrambled onboard, transforming back to himself.

"Renault! To Henesys, and make it double!" Phantom called from the deck. The ship started to move. Mercedes pinched Aran, who whimpered. "You almost let the cat out of the bag! What were you thinking?" Aran shook her head, looking apologetic.

"Sorry. My bad." She patted Phantom on the back, who flew across the entire deck. "If it weren't for this guy, though, we would have been toast!" Phantom got up, adjusting his skewed hat and glowering at Aran. "And whose fault was it we almost got busted?" Luminous got up, helping Shade and Evan up. He glared at Phantom. "Very nice story you came up with, liar. Now everyone expects us to yell those names as macro names, and what if they ask Utah, huh?"

"Enough, both of you. Fighting among us is not good." Shade finally intervened, parting the mage and the thief. He raised his hands, and both flinched away. Shade sighed and folded his arms. "How about this. We don't train or study in Henesys. Any training involving this sort of thing, we take it to the roof of the dorm at night. It's normal to have light at night." Everyone nodded. Elwin frowned. "But eh, wouldn't you all be using your powers? What if someone comes up?"

Shade thought for a moment, but came up with nothing. What was stopping the students from coming up? Evan looked at everyone anxiously, before speaking, his meek voice loud in the silence. "Lock the door?"

Aran slapped a hand on her forehead. "Of course! No one is like Phantom, and we can easily get a magic lock! You are a genius, Evan!" She wrapped her arms around the Dragon Master, while the others looked on, amused. Trust Aran to call Evan a genius. Elwin nodded. "I have a lock you can use, but first... to bed! If I'm not wrong, the tests start tomorrow!" Everyone rushed to take a nap, before the day started and the school rush began.

The Heroes scrambled to school, finally collapsing onto their seats. Now, the tests they take in Maple World could be akin to this version, but one thing was different. There was no practical to pull up the marks. It was all theory based. Not to mention Physics, which was their hardest subject yet. Somehow, it didn't make sense to the Heroes. They could jump as per normal on the Moon. Mercedes could double jump. Luminous' light magic didn't work the way it was suppose to in the books. Clearly a dragon the size of Mir would have a hard time flying Evan around. Not to mention the force in both Aran's and Shade's attack was classified as illogical when applying Physics. Phantom's cards are no better. This subject often left the Heroes in a mess, and there were a couple of times when the teacher had to corrected them. Well, Von Leon had to.

The days passed by in a flash, the Heroes juggling combat training and studying. They managed to avoid Nineheart and Claudine, though one would wonder why they were muttering math equations under their breath. The Heroes had already memorized those.

Finally, the tests were over. Back in Shisoo International, Hawkeye jumped for joy. "Finally! It's time to relax! No more mugging, let's go!" He hooked Shade and Phantom, laughing. "You guys looked like you were going to die or something." Phantom just smiled and shrugged. With his impeccable memory, memorizing things were a piece of cake. Puking them out on the paper, though, was another. Shade sighed, unhooking himself from Hawkeye's arms. He flopped over his table, tired out.

Just as he was about to doze off, he saw a vague figure in front of him. Looking up, he saw Orchid. Hmm? Didn't she say... oh well. Her face was bright red.

"Hey, Stalker."

Shade frowned. "As I said, I'm not-"

Orchid cut him off, waving six tickets at him. "L-look! I just got some tickets to my concert and I have to invite someone, so here! You can go with your stupid friends! Not that you have to go or anything! I'm not expecting you, so there!" She huffed. Shade stared at her, then at the tickets. A concert? The last one they had been to was Angelic Buster's. It had been a blast, but then again, most of the Heroes were fans of her. With the exception of Luminous. Shade took out his phone, asking Orchid when the concert was. It was tomorrow, on a Saturday evening. "Hold on, I do believe I do not have anything on..." Shade opened his phone, before remembering he didn't put anything about his daily activities in here. Hmm. There was this new fangled thing called messages, and it worked like the lightbulb they had. Sending a message, he waited for a reply.

[XX/XX/20XX]

[ 1:04 P.M.]

Shade: is there anything on for tomorrow evening

[1:05 P.M.]

Aran: hunthijt

Mercedes: Correction: Combat training, the usual. Why?

Shade: there's a concert tonight do you want to go

Evan: imin

Evan: I mean I'm in

Shade: okay

Mercedes: Whose concert? Angelic Buster?

[1:06 P.M.]

Shade: orchid

Phantom: going

Shade: you could have just told me you are sitting right in front of me smirking away

Phantom: icu

Mercedes: That's a surprise. Never thought Phantom would go.

Aran: hunrjekdk

Phantom: lolwut

Aran: fooooollld

Mercedes: Aran is banging on her phone. I'm typing whatever she says through my contact.

Mercedes: Aran says Foooooooood. Emphasis on the 'o's.

Evan: Elwin says it's okay tI go.

Evan: to

Shade: we have clearance

Mercedes: I'm in then.

Aran: Merxedes whyyyyyyyyuuyyyyy

Mercedes: Can you not even get my name right? And besides, I do feel quite tired. A concert is perfect.

Aran: dine

Mercedes: Assuming you are saying fine and not thinking about dinner again.

Aran: Imbgoing

Phantom: Every1 but Lumibutt. 404 not found white cabbage lololol

Shade: hold on

Share looked up at Luminous, whose head was buried in his book. "Luminous! There's a concert tomorrow! Do you want to go?"

Luminous turned to face him, shaking his head. "Not really. The last time I went to one, the petty marigold danced on his chair. I would like to avoid such an experience again."

Phantom grinned and poked his tablemate. "Says the wet blanket who brought a book to study at a concert! You were asking to be used as a stand."

Luminous glared at Phantom. "Pfft. But then again. Only someone like you would dance your embarrassing moves."

Phantom was speechless for a second, before he smiled wickedly. "Mhmm. But everyone seemed to love my moves. I wonder, who is the old man here, white butt?"

Shade sighed. As the two bickered, he returned to his phone. Orchid looked impatient. "So?" Shade shook his head. "Five of us are available, so hold on..." Motioning to Orchid to take the empty seat next to him, Shade typed back Luminous' reply.

[1:08 P.M.]

Shade: lumi says he doesn't want to.

Luminous: I would rather spend a day with Lania than the petty idiot.

Phantom: so now u use the phone. Ohohoh.

Luminous: im a stick in mud and I suck at lifejsjskd

Shade: someone help they are fighting again

Shade: never mind they both shut up already

Aran: youmakequickword

Mercedes: Well. How many tickets are there?

Shade: six

Mercedes: Don't waste it, ask someone else.

Shade looked up to see Phantom already awake. He had taken a ticket from Orchid and was dancing around avoiding her hands. He read out the ticket, "Premium ticket! Access to back stage after the show. Seating... at the front?"

Orchid snatched the ticket and marched back to Shade. Shade smiled sheepishly, to which Orchid flushed. "Sorry about him. But a premium ticket?"

Orchid flicked her hair over her shoulder, her face turning red. "Yeah! Just some extra ones that no one wanted to buy!"

Shade looked around the classroom, spotting a Hawkeye staring at him with a wide-eyed puppy look. Luminous closed his book, getting up. "Shade. Give my ticket to someone else. As Mercedes said, don't waste it." He left the classroom, presumably going back to the dormitory. Shade frowned. Who would want to go? He looked up at the other trio of students in front of him, two of which who were currently getting bugged by the chatty boy in the cap. Ah.

"Hawkeye. Do you want to go?" The other two second-years beside him turned to stare at him, then turned to face Hawkeye, before Phantom quickly turned away to stuff his books into his bag. Hawkeye feigned ignorance, trying to look surprised and failing miserably. His large hopeful eyes were a dead give away. "W-what? To Orchid's concert? Well... if you want me to..." He acted as if he didn't have a choice, avoiding the glares from the other two. Shade covered his mouth to block a chuckle when the ruler landed smack dab on Hawkeye's shoulder with a thwack.

"You have to finish your homework first. Or Mr. Stan will get you!" Mihile huffed, pointing the ruler at his friend's face. "You still owe him three weeks worth of homework!" Hawkeye froze, before laughing nervously. "I'll take care of it, don't worry! I'll just pop by to the concert and back, nothing to it!"

But immediately he whirled back and his palms were face down on Shade's table, his eyes shining bright enough to rival Luminous's crystals. "So Eunwol. Really?"

Shade sighed. Hawkeye hiding his wants? No chance. He turned to Orchid, who looked devastated. "Orchid. We'll be there. Thank you for getting these tickets, we appreciate it."

Orchid folded her arms, looking away. "I said they were leftovers! I-I didn't specifically request for these! Now go and give them to your stalker friends already!" She pressed the tickets into Shade's hands and ran away. Phantom chuckled at Shade's expression and took a ticket. He passed one to Hawkeye, who didn't seem like he could hold in his excitement. "Okay! Meet you in the dorm lobby tomorrow!" Shade and Phantom nodded, and quickly got out of class before Aran decided to come in to haul their butts out.

Aran decided that morning till evening was to make up for combat training, and the training ground floor was very cleanly wiped with their butts by the time they were released to get ready. The Heroes returned to their specific homes to get ready, while Luminous returned to Lania. He seemed rather happy when he was finally allowed to go home. Phantom whispered something about a lolita complex and was promptly given a impromptu sparring fight.

Somehow, the winner of that fight was Aran.

In the dorm lobby, Hawkeye was dressed casually, though he was pacing around. When the rest arrived, he was shocked. Evan was dressed in a plaid shirt and a pair of shorts and sandals with Mir trotting beside him. Shade came in a frilly white shirt that Hawkeye was pretty sure that pirates wore only in movies. He also wore a pair of long pants and shoes, with a red sash tied at his waist under his shirt. Aran was dressed... in her usual outfit, no surprise there. Phantom showed up in a cat-eared hoodie with a long-sleeved shirt and dress slacks. All for a concert. But then, Mercedes was no better, with her picnic sundress, straw hat and neon bangles.

"What….. What are…" Nah, Hawkeye thought better of it. These dorky transfer students wouldn't know a troop of walking fashion disasters even when they were in front of a mirror.

Mercedes flicked her hair behind her, looking pleased with herself. "Come on, we are going to be late. Where is the concert?"

Shade looked at the tickets, confused. How did addresses work here again? In the Maple World, the concert venues had the largest signs indicating where they were. Not to mention that the concerts were usually held in the same place, be it the Event Area or in one of the towns. It's usually the Event Area.

Hawkeye laughed nervously. "So, uh, this means you don't know where to go?" All the people in front of him shook their heads. Sighing, Hawkeye gestured for them to follow him. "Come on. I'll lead. Let's go!" They walked towards the concert venue, and Hawkeye kept flinching when he saw someone staring. The fashion disasters behind him seem to be unaffected, laughing and discussing what the concert would be like. Hawkeye noted that for some reason, they kept talking about not wearing their casual often. Their definition of casual... Hawkeye hoped they didn't pass by any fashion designer. They would faint on the spot.

Once there, everyone was ushered to front. One thing about the front, they could see and touch Orchid's hands if she reached out to them. Everyone settled into their seats, waiting for something to happen.

The hall dimmed, and the spotlights turned on. Silence across the concert, until the spotlights focused on the stage. Smoke billowed out onto the stage, and the idol appeared, clad in black and gold. It was similar to Wing Master Orchid, but then again, it was in accordance to her theme of the concert.

Lights started to flash different colors, and everyone started to scream. Orchid on the stage sang and dance, people waving light sticks and singing along, though some were a little off tune. The ones at the front were enjoying the concert, though they weren't singing. Evan was sitting on Aran's shoulder, hugging Mir and waving his lightstick, humming along the music. Mercedes waved as well, her neon bangles actually glowing in the darkness of the hall. All around them, people were screaming Orchid's name and yelling various forms of 'I love you'. Hawkeye was already dancing on his chair, singing along. Shade and Phantom were pretty much standing on their seats, avoiding Hawkeye. When Orchid stretched out her hands to touch the fans, her eyes landed on Shade and she flushed. Her voice became louder. Evan, sitting on Aran, gave a high five to Orchid, laughing and giggling.

Nearing the end of the concert, Shade looked up and spotted something. His eyes darkened. His attention focused on Orchid as she moved, then he glanced up again. In that split second, he saw movement near one of the spotlights just above Orchid. And it happened.

A loud snap, and the spotlight was falling. Everything slowed down. The sounds around him became muffled. Shade drew back his hand and whispered, " _Blade Imp._ "

The familiar purple spirit formed around his arm and Shade threw it forward. It hooked around Orchid's outfit, and yanked her towards him. She fell off the stage, Shade wrapping his hands around her before they both crashed to the ground. Then a crash was heard, followed by screaming. The crowd had seen the spotlight crash where Orchid was standing. Panic ensued. Everyone started to run. Shade hugged Orchid close, as the crowd started to turn into a stampede. Spotlights were starting to fall, and no one wanted to be crushed.

Shade felt feet trampling on him, as he kept Orchid underneath him. He could feel Orchid trembling. Shade gritted his teeth, trying to wince. He could hear Evan calling for him, but Shade could not speak. If he did, Shade would have yelled in pain. Once he felt the feet on his back were gone, he looked up to see if it was safe. Shade heard a loud snap, and looked up. A mistake. He saw a spotlight coming straight for him. Shade gripped Orchid, tearing her from his clothes that she held tightly and threw her. Her bounced onto the floor nearby, and Shade felt a searing pain on his head. Black spots danced around in his vision, and he felt glass shards near his fingers. He could see the rest of his teammates and Hawkeye from behind Orchid. Shade felt himself tip, and the last thing he saw was Orchid staring at him with fear and shock. How funny. Shade thought, as the world turned black. How similar it was to when the seal was casted.

"Shade! No!"

The rest of the Heroes were pushed out of the concert when the panic occurred. They had seen Shade fall, but they could not do anything when they were pushed away. Once out, Hawkeye seemed to begin fretting. "Orchid! Eunwol! Where are they?!" Evan pointed back into the hall, his eyes large with shock. "He's still in there! We gotta help him!" Everyone nodded, and Hawkeye gulped. "Wait, we are going back into the danger zone!?" Phantom nodded, staring at him. Hawkeye took a deep breath, adjusting his cap. A determined expression on his face, Hawkeye gave a thumbs up. They ran back in only to see Orchid being tossed towards them and a spotlight landing on Shade's head. Glass shards shattered everywhere.

His head was bleeding. His health was low. Shade's face had a few cuts, all bleeding. His fingers twitched. Shade's eyes started to close, and he fell forward, landing on the glass shards.

Orchid let out a shriek. Everyone froze. Evan let out a cry, "Shade! No!" He ran towards the body, Mir hot on his heels. Everyone else was stunned. Evan picked up Shade and started to tug, his eyes growing tearful. Phantom looked down, Mercedes had her hands over her mouth. Hawkeye tipped his hand to hide his eyes. Aran grimaced and walked over, lifting Shade over her shoulder. "Oi! Orchid! Where's the infirmary!" Orchid seemed stunned, but her hand lifted and pointed towards a direction. Aran nodded, and yelled at the stunned idiots. "Come on! We gotta get this guy back up!"

Hawkeye and Orchid seemed stunned. The rest followed after her, rushing after Aran. Hawkeye turned to Orchid, fidgeting. "So.. uh, shouldn't we call the ambulance?"

Aran dumped the bleeding pirate onto the bed, with Evan rushing over. Pressing on the wound, Evan let out a sigh of relief. "He isn't that badly injured yet. It's a critical hit, he's dangerously low on health. I'll work on the wound, Phantom, could you heal him for now?" Phantom nodded, and tapped his cane on the floor. Magic swirled around it and formed a staff, commonly used by mages. Phantom grasped both hands on the newly formed staff, and began to heal Shade. Evan was tending to the wound, taking out a health potion and rubbing some of the liquid on Shade's wound.

The wound sealed up after a while, and Evan got to cleaning Shade up. His outfit was ruined, that was for sure. The rest of the Heroes sat there, quiet. Mercedes got up. "There has to be some reason why the spotlights all fell down. Evan, we are going to check what happened." Evan looked up, corking the bottle. "Wait. I'm following you. I want to know what caused Shade to fall. It must have been pretty powerful. Come on, Mir." He gestured to the dog next to him, and followed Mercedes. Aran stayed behind. "It's kinda high, and I don't think I can do much. I like my feet on the ground." Phantom remained silent, watching as Shade's health went up. He was still unconscious.

Evan and Mercedes went backstage. "Seems like Orchid and Hawkeye are gone. Come on, let's hurry up with the investigation." He pointed up at the ceiling.

Mercedes nodded. She aimed for the ceiling and jumped. Once. Twice. She grabbed one of the cables on top. "Up here. The stuff holding up the spotlights seem to be these trusses here." She waved to Evan. Evan nodded. He couldn't get up there, but at least Mercedes can. She examined the trusses. "Looks like they were cut. They are quite clean. There's a burnt part as well. Either someone attempted to melt it. That's what it seems like. What about down there, Evan?"

Evan had been investigating the entrance to the dressing rooms, and he paused. "I sense negative energy here." Mir piped up next to him. "I think there was a Dusty here! It's gone for now. The energy left behind is quite…. oh!"

Evan turned around when Mir suddenly exclaimed to see a large crowd of Dusties materializing behind him. He turned back to see another large crowd already advancing on him. Gulping, he took out his wand. "Mercedes… Ambush!"

He waved his wand, and Mir resumed his normal form. Mercedes clung onto her cable, taking out one bowgun. She looked around, and spotted the flying Dusties. She pointed her bowgun at them and shot. They were taken down, but with Mercedes still on the cable, she was unable to use both bowguns, and that extended to her skills.

Meanwhile, Evan below was taking care of the mob quite alright. Activating _Dragon Booster_ had been a good move. Now, Evan was just using _Magic Flare_ over and over again. The Dusties were all defeated quickly enough by both people. Mercedes smiled and gave a thumbs up to the Dragon Master. She turned back to the trusses, examining them once more.

"Now that I think about it. It reminds me of the Poison Dusty. And with the sudden amount of Dusties appearing, I think there might be a chance of a Troublemaker. Though, I wonder who it belongs to." Mercedes got down from the cables, landing on the floor nicely. Evan nodded.

Digging in his pockets, he pulled out his phone. "I know Luminous shouldn't be here, but I think it would be best to inform him. And Elwin. They don't know about this." He sent a message to Elwin. Mercedes nodded. "Come on, Evan. Let's go back to the rest. Shade should be up by now."

Meanwhile, Shade was already sitting up. He was already getting off the bed when they arrived. Phantom grinned. "His health is back up to full. I checked." Shade nodded, though picking at his hair. "My hair is sticky…"

Aran laughed. "Yeah! 'cuz you got both blood and potions in it! It gives your hair a nice gradient though!"

Everyone gave her a deadpan stare.

Evan sighed. "Come on, let's go out."

The Heroes were just about to exit when suddenly the door flew open. People clad in white rushed into the room, having at least two people grabbing one Hero. Aran required ten in order to stop all movements. And even then, the ten people had to be replaced every second. The Heroes were dragged out of the room, and they spotted people in blue rushing into the area. Mercedes and Evan could only hope that there were no more Dusties.

They were all given a check-up outside the hall. One person kept questioning why Shade had blood in his hair. He didn't get a response. Shade ignored him all the way. After a while, they were released, though one person kept yelling at the rest to find the injured kid that protected Orchid. The Heroes remained silent. Phantom kept nudging Shade, who pushed him away.

Hawkeye found them, after a while. "Hey! Are you all okay?" He looked genuinely worried. "I called the ambulance." He looked at Shade strangely. "Aren't you injured? You seem fine to me now! Are you okay?"

Shade nodded. "Yes. I'm alright. Just a scratch and some bleeding. I passed out for a few minutes. There was nothing to be worried about." Hawkeye patted Shade on the back, sighing and hanging his head. "Thank god! You worried me there for a second, Eunwol. Did you know that Orchid was actually fr-EOWCH!" He flinched away from Orchid, who had pinched him in the arm. She shot daggers at him, before her attention was turned to Shade.

"You! Stupid Stalker! Next time, don't drag me off the stage! That was not the time to be stalking me, you stupid stalker!" Orchid huffed, before storming off again. Shade looked more confused than anything else.

Mercedes sighed, before she noticed her phone was ringing. Picking it up, she saw a message from Luminous.

[8:11 P.M.]

Luminous: Coming over. I hate you all.

As soon as she put down the phone, she heard barking, and who else was it but Elwin who rushed to their side. Evan bent down and hugged the small dog, with Mir looking on jealously. Behind him, Lily and Luminous shifted through the crowd. "Let's go somewhere else where there isn't that many people." Everyone nodded, and followed Luminous. Shade paused and turned to Hawkeye, who was tagging along. "Hawkeye. No. Could you go to the backstage instead? We will meet you there." Hawkeye frowned, stopping. He tilted his head, studying Shade for a moment. "Okay…? Is it the country boy secrets thing? Or more of a clique that I'm not part of thing?" Shade shrugged. "Neither? Just… it doesn't concern you. And if you do go, I think Luminous wouldn't like that. He is kind of grumpy right now."

Hawkeye looked shocked. "But doesn't he look like that all the time?!"

Shade had to stifle a laugh. Of course Hawkeye would point out Luminous' face was always a scowl. "Well, yes and no. I can tell. But please, just to help both you and me, go backstage. If anything happens, I'll call you, okay?" Hawkeye nodded, and turned and returned backstage.

Shade quickly caught up with the rest, who had retreated to the side of the concert hall. Luminous stopped, turning around. His red eye flared up as he glared at everyone. "Of course on the day off when I actually do get to go back to Lania and _relax_ you find trouble. Of course." Aran raised her hands in the air. "Sorry, Luminous. It just happened, you know? So just take it into your stride." Phantom shrugged, grinning away. "Maybe that's why you shouldn't leave us alone for more than a minute."

Shade whacked the two of them before they could start arguing. Lily meowed, getting everyone's attention.

"Look, there is a lot of negative energy here. If we don't tend to it quickly, a Troublemaker might appear and we wouldn't even be here to deal with it. So we need to draw it out."

Evan looked thoughtful. "What sort of negative energy? Who's the source?"

Elwin shrugged, or shrugged as much as a little puppy can do. He looked towards the audience outside, pointing a paw at them. "I think it's from them. You know how hardcore fans can be. All of you should know. Whatever negative energy must have gathered in the hall, causing Dusties to manifest." Mercedes nodded. "Makes sense. But what can we do to drag out the energy…"

She paused, before a sly smile appeared on her face. Aran looked at her, a little uncomfortable. "This is going to be so good, I'm kinda scared." Mercedes chuckled darkly, nudging Phantom. Phantom blinked at her for a bit, before a scary look came over his eyes. His smirk was evil, his low laughter was pretty much sending chills down everyone's spines.

The resident shippers were on board.

"I do hope we are on the right track, Mercedes." Shade finally asked, as he was being pushed.

Mercedes smiled sweetly at him. "Don't you worry, Shade. Everything will be just fine with Elwin and Lily. All you have to do is go out on stage and wow the audience, hmm? It's just that simple. You are Orchid's saviour, after all."

The Heroes, or well, Phantom and Mercedes, and Luminous once he got what they were trying to do, convinced Orchid to continue the concert. They offered to be her bodyguards, just in case anything happened. Well, they volunteered Shade. Orchid had at first rejected the idea, until Mercedes dropped that the fans were just dying to know what happened, and if their idol was safe. That drove Orchid to call everyone back into the hall. Luminous was to shine the light on her, though no one questioned why he was able to do such a thing when the spotlights were down. He still managed to with ease.

Mercedes was busy cleaning Shade's outfit as she hummed. The manager had thought it was a brilliant idea to give Shade a medal of honor, for saving Orchid. Of course, a medal Mercedes provided herself. Or maybe it was the fact that Orchid said it was a good idea. Maybe. Though she took back her words once Mercedes requested her to give it to Shade on stage. She had stuttered, before yelling at Mercedes. Phantom just slid over, and told her that if she didn't, Shade would be given the medal by the police, and her chance at embarrassing Shade was gone forever. After all, who wouldn't want to be given a medal by the police? An idol, not so much, right?

All they had to convince Orchid was suggest the idea to Shade in front of her, and once she saw Shade backing away, she believed Shade was actually embarrassed. So she agreed.

Now, her songs were going on, and Shade just stared ahead. The blood was cleaned off his clothes to the best of Mercedes' and Evan's abilities. Evan looked apologetic, while Mercedes just looked excited.

"There's your cue! Put on that hat and rescue the prisoners from Orchid!" Mercedes placed a hat on him, hiding his face and pushed him out on stage.

Shade, on stage, immediately went stiff. What was he suppose to do? Save the prisoners? Oh. He walked forward cautiously, only to see Orchid whip the area before him. He flinched and moved back a little, before remembering what Mercedes told him.

"Orchid isn't exactly going to hit you. All you have to do is to pretend. And dance a little. Don't worry, Shade. It's the perfect plan."

Of course. Elwin and Lily would seal all the Dusties into a Dust Zone, preventing anyone else from seeing them. It had to be swift. Luminous was above, just in case something else happened. Phantom was nearer to the audience, as with Aran. They can deal with handling the group.

Phantom below started to laugh. Hard. Aran was smirking next to him, watching the show.

"Have you seen anyone dance so bad it looks good?" Aran nudged Phantom, who had to try and stop his laughter.

"Clearly I'm looking at one such example now."

Once the song was over, Shade stopped, his face slightly red. He had heard Phantom and Aran's laughter, so it was really embarrassing. Other than that, it was a good workout, he guessed. Orchid walked up to the front, and started to speak.

"Hello to you all out there! Everyone apologizes for the sudden accident earlier, but we are back!" Cheers could be heard, and Shade started to slink towards the backstage. It failed? He was just about to get backstage when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Mercedes. He gulped, and was pushed back on stage. Orchid was just concluding her address to the audience, then turned around.

"And earlier, as you all know, I was nearly crushed! Who would want to crush me?! But thanks to someone, I was able to survive for another day. Today, we have a s-special guest! Come back here, Eunwol!" She grabbed Shade's arm and dragged him on stage. She huffed, glaring at him.

"S-so this guy was the one that saved me. Okay?! Done?!" She was getting more and more flustered, as the manager came out. Passing her the medal, she hastily pinned it onto Shade. Shade glanced down to see his medal name change from 'Member of the Pointy-Ear Fox Village' to 'Orchid's Protector'. Trust Mercedes to play such a trick. Orchid flushed. "There! Done! Now get off the stage!" She shooed him away. Meanwhile, Aran glanced around. "It's increasing alright."

Phantom nodded. It just wasn't enough. Now if only… he grinned. Immediately standing up, he cupped his mouth. "Ms. Orchiiiiid~ If I might ask, why are you so flustered around him? Is he something special to you?" Orchid shot a glare at him, but then the noise from the crowd erupted. "Ms. Orchid! Is he your boyfriend?" "Ms Orchid! Who is he?" "Ms Orchid! Over here! Is he your secret bodyguard?!"

The questions kept coming over and over again, with Orchid growing more and more flustered. Her face grew redder and redder, while at the back, Mercedes spotted Shade hiding his face. When Orchid finally yelled, "He's not my anything! He's just a stalker!", Elwin froze.

"Lily! It's here!"

The cat nodded, and quickly chanted the spell alongside Elwin. Sealing it in the backstage, Lily motioned to Evan. Evan nodded and tugged on Mercedes.

"Good job. Now, to chase away everyone!" Mercedes shot an arrow near Luminous, who immediately threw out a light orb. It started to vibrate, then a bright light was emitted. Phantom and Aran shielded their eyes in time. When the light faded, everyone was blinded. Aran sighed. Her turn. "Everyone! Out! Out! Something is here! Eeeek!" Her voice boomed across the hall, and everyone started to scream and run out at once. Phantom and Aran escaped, while the blinded manager grabbed Orchid and tried to run out. Evan and Mir guided him outside. When he was outside, one man wearing the blue uniform approached him.

"Uh, did you drop this?" He held out a hairband with dragon wings on it. Evan stared at it, before checking his inventory. It was gone! It must have dropped during the concert. "Yeah… sorry. It's really important. Thank you very much!" He smiled cheerfully at the man, who tipped his hat. "No problem, kiddo. Remember to take care of your belongings." Evan nodded, shoving the hair band into his bag. Shade will scold him, that's for sure. Mir whined, looking up at Evan. He pressed a finger to his lips, before rushing off..

He watched Evan pocket the hair band and ran off. Good. He didn't notice it. It was a stroke of luck he found the hair band on the floor near the stage. He had to make great efforts in convincing Officer Helena that it was nothing suspicious. At least she believed him when he said it was from Evan. And even then, if he hadn't found the hair band, who knows what sort of shenanigans they might be up to? Orchid didn't usually do this.

He sighed and flicked open his phone. Pressing a button on an app, he closed it. The recording begins… now.

Evan sighed and returned to the group, who was waiting for him outside the backstage door. Aran grinned. "Ready to go? Come on, put on your gear already!" Everyone else had already don their armor. Evan nodded and quickly discarded the singlet and shorts, switching to his robes. Grabbing his wand, he pointed at the door. "Let's go!"

Aran nodded and walked up to the person finally standing guard at the door. Apparently, after everyone left the building, it was his job to make sure no one entered backstage. Aran grinned at him. "Hey. We got them backstage tickets. Let us pass." The burly man took one look at her and laughed. Even when Aran waved the tickets in his face, he still refused to move. Aran started to get angry.

"Look! Big guy! We got some cleaning to do! If you don't let us pass, I'mma go right to the manager and tell him that you won't let us clean up the dust! And since you weren't here earlier, I'm pretty sure the manager will be quite angry that you left your post? Not to mention, if there are any troublemakers in there, you wouldn't know a thing, would you?" The man paled. Aran smirked. Leaning forward, she poked him. "Now be a good kid and get out of my way, yeah? We will clear out any troublemakers for you, and we can finally start to clean the dust!" The man quickly moved away, and Aran stalked in, everyone else following after her, a sheepish look on their face. Luminous had his hand on his face, and his forehead looked red.

Once inside, they saw the Dusties. One. Two. Go!

As they continued, they heard whimpering. Hmm? Aran frowned. "There's a separate room here. Come on!" Shade nodded, and everyone rushed into the dressing room.

There, they saw Hawkeye, curled up in a fetal position, whimpering. "Go away! Someone help me!" Shade paused, before looking ashamed. He completely forgot about Hawkeye, who was in the backstage! Oh dear. Phantom laughed, patting Shade on the back. "We all make mistakes. Now let's see here…" Aran patted Shade on the head, which had him curled on the floor for a few seconds. That hurt a lot.

Aran swung Maha around, clearing away the Dusties. She picked up the Hawkeye, who struggled feebly. She dumped him outside.

"Okay. So who let the wimp in?" She poked the crying Hawkeye. Shade sighed. "Sorry. I'll get him…"

"No you won't. Elwin and I will do it." Lily called out. Hawkeye looked up and stared at the cat, rubbing his eyes. "Come on, you big baby." Elwin smiled at them sympathetically, before disappearing with Lily and Hawkeye.

"Now that's out of the way, let's hurry. We got one heck of a training session!" Aran swung Maha around, everyone ducking to avoid the large polearm. Aran turned and spotted the large group of Dusties. Her grin stretched from ear to ear, before she yelled out a battle cry and rushing into battle.

They slowly destroyed the Dusties, slowly. There were many stages to this Dust Zone. As they moved, they heard something. Feet shuffling. They pause. Who could it be? Phantom crept to the door, before flinging it open. And he was promptly smacked with a bottle of... hair dye?

"What the heck! Get out of here! Huh? Stalker?! What are you doing here! Get out!" Orchid was in her dressing room. Shade blinked and gaped. Evan seemed shocked as well. "B-but didn't Mir and I put you outside?"

Orchid rolled her eyes, sighing. "I came back. I needed to pick something up. Why?"

Everyone groaned. Great. With Lily and Elwin out, how would they get Orchid out? Shade shook his head. "It's dangerous. Let's go." He grabbed Orchid and led her out. "I'll take care of her, the dressing room is getting a little stuffy. With negative energy. Let's get out of here!" Just as he said that, a large crowd of Dusties formed where Orchid had been standing. Aran took care of them easily.

With Orchid with them, the Dusties seemed to swarm a lot more around them. But because of Orchid, who was protesting then screaming, no one could do much except Aran and Mercedes, who could stay behind Orchid and shoot. Luminous, Phantom and Evan were pretty muvh useless. Phantom could only heal.

Shade on the other hand was not faring well. Sure, he had the highest defence, but with the Dusties apparently going for Orchid, he kept taking hits for her. And each time, she would complain loudly, before criticizing everyone else for not helping. She stayed close to Shade, gripping his clothes, which made it harder for Shade to move around. It was clear she now knew of the danger . But her inexperience with danger made it hard for anyone to protect her, for she just kept running into danger.

It was a rest stop, and the negative energy had waned a little. By then, Shade was almost dying. He was panting, plucking coins out from his hair. His robes were torn, and he kept coughing. Poison. Dammit. There were burn marks all over his face. He collapsed on the floor, coughing. Evan crouched down next to him, Mir in his dog form licking Shade's arm. Phantom was on the other side, checking his injuries.

Aran sat down, leaning on Maha as she drank a bottle of reindeer milk. Ah. She needed more. Mercedes was sipping her Mana potions while Luminous stood aside. All three of them were blocking Orchid from grabbing Shade.

"Hmph! If you all knew there was danger here, then why didn't you get the police! Stupid stalker! In order to stalk me, you rushed in here? I can't believe you! And all of you! You are kinda useless! Eunwol was getting hit everywhere and all you could do was stand at the side and watch!" Orchid was complaining again. Aran huffed, looking away, while Mercedes closed her eyes, not wanting to flare up. Luminous' red eye flare up, but he didn't say a word. Orchid continued, "Useless! And Aran's just hitting everything and anything! Mercedes, you could have helped Eunwol but you didn't! Hmph, I can see why he has you as friends! Stupid stalker! I would have been alright on my own! And don't give me that look, Evan! Mir is a dog, for goodness sake! He can help too right?!" Mir growled, glaring at Orchid. He didn't like how Dusties tasted, thank you very much!

The tension was building up as Orchid continued to complain. Luminous made a move to shut her up, but was beaten to the punch.

Something had snapped.

Phantom pushed past the girls and walked up to Orchid. She blinked at him in surprise, before folding her arms. "What? Got something to say, you useless idiot?"

Phantom's eyes were trained on Orchid, but everyone else knew this aura. Except Evan. This was the same aura he had when anyone mentioned Aria, or Lotus. It was the same aura that appeared when anyone crossed the line with the Master Thief.

He was furious. A rare emotion displayed in his face.

Phantom remained quiet as Orchid prattled on. A few seconds, and suddenly Orchid was slammed against the wall behind her, a hand around her throat. She wasn't choking, not yet, but Phantom's fingers were twitching.

"Shut up. Like you did anything. Or did you think we were your bodyguards, listening to your every command?" Malice was evident in the words Phantom spat out, his usual smug grin gone from his face, replaced with a neutral expression. His grip on his cane tightened, as he stared at Orchid. "What makes you think we aren't trying? What gives you the right to tell us all this? What gives you the bloody thought that you are entitled to this?" His voice was dangerously low. No one made a move, watching as Phantom continued. "We can't do our thing because of you! And Aran's clearing the big groups, but you keep running into larger ones! Mercedes can't shoot because your giant head is in the way! Shade getting injured?! Because someone would not stick to him made him take hits for her!" He glared at her, his gaze furious. Orchid was scratching at the hand around her throat, but to no avail.

Phantom paused, before a chuckle passed through his lips. "I bet you think you are perfect, so you can tell us all this. Free from fault? I get it, that's because you are _Orchid_. You don't have a single damn fault."

Orchid finally found a way to make a comeback, snarling back at Phantom. "Oh yeah?! Says the person who kept running from the bloody things! What makes you think you are any better, you coward! You can't even defend Eunwol, idiot!"

Something clicked in Phantom, and his cane dropped to the ground. It landed on the ground with a thunk. Phantom raised his hand, as if to slap her. Orchid flinched, but the slap never came. Phantom turned to see Shade, fully restored, gripping his arm.

"She's not the same person. Don't, Phantom. It's not worth it. Calm down. I'm alright, everyone's alright. No one is dead."

Phantom stared at Shade, before snatching his hand back. He released Orchid, who fled to Evan. Phantom picked up his cane, tipping his hat such that his eyes were hidden. His trademark smirk came back, though it looked forced. "Oh dear me. I seem to have done something wrong. I do apologize, Orchid. I'll go on ahead and do a little scouting, hmm? Tata!" He called out in a cheery voice, before walking off into the next area.

Everyone remained silent. Evan just shivered a little. "He... snapped. He snapped, didn't he?" Aran sighed loudly and nodded. Shade shook his head. "Let's give him some time to himself. Sorry, Orchid. Perhaps it would be better if you don't say anything to Phantom right now." Orchid just stared at Shade. She didn't look convinced. The group followed after Phantom after a while. Orchid clung to Shade's arm the entire time. The area after them was cleared of any Dusties. At the end of it all, they saw Phantom, sitting with his legs crossed on his chair. He looked up, though his eyes never met anyone's.

"Oh, hello. Are you all done resting? The final stage is just next door, I do sense a powerful presence." Phantom tilted his hat, though he didn't get up from his seat. Mercedes nodded. "All right then. Are you not following?" Phantom shook his head, a forced smile on his face.

"Actually, leave Orchid here. I'll make sure she's safe. I did clear the rest of the area while you all were resting up, so you can take over from here. Besides, I am quite tired" Phantom leaned down and relaxed on his chair, his legs still folded. Orchid scowled and shook her head. "Why should I stay?!"

Phantom didn't say a word, though Aran put in her comment. "That's because in order to leave, we are going to have to do something. And in order to do that something, it's kinda like having a secret. You don't want your own secret to be exposed, do you?" Orchid seemed speechless. Shade untangled his arm from Orchid, nodding. "It would make everything a lot easier. We can go all out, and we don't have to worry about hitting you." One look at Orchid's expression could tell that she didn't want to stay. Not that anyone could blame her. Luminous rubbed his temples, a visible vein om his head. "Look. You stay here, we find the damn exit, we leave, everyone is happy. You staying here would expedite the process. A lot. So just shut up and stay here already." He growled.

Everyone nodded. "It would be for the best, Orchid. A-and Phantom isn't that bad to stay with!" Evan smiled hopefully. Orchid snorted, shaking her head. "After what he did to me? No way. Not now, not ever!" Her words seemed final.

"If she wants to go ahead and see the blinding light, she can go ahead. Not like we can force her or anything. After, all, she's a damn princess." Phantom was now picking at his fingernails, thought they were under his gloves. He didn't seem to care one bit if Orchid followed them in. Mercedes glared at Phantom, irritated. They couldn't force her, that was true.

Orchid did not take that comment lightly. "Why you! Acting all high and mighty! I swear-"

Shade groaned, interrupting Orchid. Of course Phantom would act this way. He wasn't cooled off yet. But at least, he was making an effort. Though Shade would give him a C. Shade took out his chair and set it up. He took a step back to examine it, before turning to Orchid. "Here. Sit down and don't lose my chair. Take care of it, will you?" He smiled, before rushing into the portal, everyone else hot on his heels. Orchid had not even agreed. She frowned, taking a step forward.

"Really now? Your stalker just asked you for a favor, and even lent you his favourite and most precious chair. Are you just gonna leave it here? You disappoint me, Orchid!" Phantom waved his arms at the frustrated girl. He smirked, folding his arms across his chest. "Imagine how sad Eunwol would be, after knowing his one and only present from his family was lost because _someone didn't do their job._ " Phantom sighed deeply, as if depressed, watching as Orchid paused, turned and sat down on the chair with a huff. "It's not like I'm doing this to make sure nothing happens! The stalker was stupid enough to leave this here, so I'm going to use it! So there!" Phantom smirked and laid down. Mission accomplished.

Meanwhile, inside the dungeon, everyone else was ready for the battle. As they entered, the surroundings changed. It was in the audience area. On stage, was a Troublemaker. A Troublemaker? Why would there be one?! Aran frowned, scratching her head. "Enough energy to make one appear out of nowhere? Now that's something." The Troublemaker was holding a microphone of sorts in its hand, and it twirled around. Suddenly, large swarms of Dusties appeared around the fighters, and the battle began.

Luminous felt his anger rise, and his eye started to glow. "Get that thing up on that stage. I'll stay to deal with all these. Annoying little monsters, I was suppose to stay with Lania today!" Unleashing his anger upon the summoned creatures, Luminous cleared a good number quite quickly. Shade, Aran and Mercedes all scrambled onstage, while Evan remained behind to help out with the growing number. The Troublemaker kept summoning more.

Aran yelled and attempted to land a hit, only to have the Troublemaker disappear. She looked around, confused, and Mercedes spotted the Troublemaker behind Aran. Aiming her bowguns, she fired a couple of arrows. Too late, the Troublemaker disappeared, the arrows narrowly missing her teammate. Aran whipped around, miffed. "Damn that thing to hell! Where is it?"

Shade found it soon enough, and immediately used Spirit Trap. With it trapped for a moment, all three launched attack after attack at it. Once it was released, though, it twirled, and more Dusties appeared. And with that, its health was restored.

The cycle continued for some time. with the health of the Troublemaker being replenished each time. Shade finally stopped, wondering what the heck is wrong with their technique. Studying the Troublemaker, he glanced at the Dusties that were summoned. There was a large crowd, and each time more came, the more the Troublemaker's health was replenished. It was also moving a lot faster, and its attack was getting more and more painful. Could it be…?

"Mercedes! Aran! Focus on the Dusties! Remove them to get the Troublemaker to slow down!" yelled Shade, who then turned his attention to the Dusties. Not knowing what Shade had in mind, Mercedes attacked the crowd. Aran turned and landed in a large crowd, taking out a couple at a time.

As the crowd was growing smaller, Evan noticed a change. "I-It's getting slower! We can do this!" He waved his wand at the Troublemaker on stage. Aran grinned widely, hopping back on stage. "Time for the main star to appear! And it sure isn't you, Troublemaker!" Aran waved Maha, slamming the weapon into the Troublemaker. A considerable damage was dealt. Mercedes hopped onto stage, shooting as well. The Troublemaker disappeared, and more Dusties appeared. The boys took them out as fast as possible, while the girls took down the Troublemaker.

As the health of the Troublemaker was nearly gone, it waved its arms, as if pleading for mercy. Aran swung Maha for the final blow, when the Troublemaker suddenly disappeared. The Dusties in the audience area also died on the spot. The Heroes were left, confused. "What the…? We didn't even kill that Troublemaker! My experience points! No!" Aran yelled out, stomping. Mercedes glanced around. "Seems like this area is cleared. Look, there's a portal there. Someone get Phantom and Orchid, we need to leave this area as soon as possible."

Shade nodded, returning to the previous area. He looked to see Orchid sitting on his chair, pouting, while Phantom was laughing away. "Oh hey, Shade! Did you know that the lady here tried to take something while I was asleep? She tried to pickpocket me? Me of all people!" Shade frowned, shaking his head. Was Phantom high or something? He wouldn't ever let his guard down on just anyone. Phantom calmed down, getting up and keeping his chair. "I haven't laughed this hard ever since I saw Lumibutt sit down on that whoppee cushion." He walked past Shade, into the portal. Shade glanced after him. "I hope Gaston gives him his tea," he muttered, walking to Orchid.

"Thank you for ta-"

"It's not like I was taking care of it for you! You left it here, you stupid stalker! Next time, take care of your own things better! Idiot!" Orchid pouted and marched away, storming into the portal. Shade rubbed his head, taking his chair along.

The Heroes managed to get Orchid out, and saw Lily and Elwin. Lily was not pleased.

"You all are idiots! Someone should have taken her out immediately! Nincompoops! Morons!" Lily fumed. Orchid stared at the cat in surprise. Lily turned and stared at Orchid.

Orchid fell, with Shade catching her. "I just adjusted her memory, so no one speaks of this. And Hawkeye is fine, just bawling his eyes out. Adjusted his memory too. You idiots. Next time, Grendel's going to hear about this!" Lily snapped, with the Heroes nodding, a frightened look on their faces. Another one of Grendel's lecture was enough to send them running for the hills.

"Now that this fiasco is over, I'm leaving." Luminous grumbled, turning to leave. As he took a step, something caught his eye. What was that? He stopped and walked over to Evan. "Hold still…" he muttered. Evan froze, wondering what Luminous was doing.

"What's this?" Luminous picked something from Evan's headband, a metallic object. Huh? Everyone gathered around it, frowning. "It's nothing I have ever seen before. What sort of gadget is this?" Mercedes stared at it. Aran picked it up, holding it above her head. "Eh, nothing like I have seen before. What the hell?" She dropped it back into Luminous' palm. Phantom stared at it, before grimacing. "Hey, Aran. You and your strength destroyed that thing." Aran blinked, before bending down to Luminous' palm. The gadget was bent. Aran huffed. "Sorry. Didn't think it was this weak."

Evan scratched his head. "I don't get it. Where did this come from? What is it?"

"A listening device. And if I'm not wrong, a spy camera." Phantom's face was serious, studying the chip. Luminous frowned. "Are you saying that…"

Everyone's hearts sank when Phantom nodded.

Lily slapped a paw on her forehead. "You idiots! Attracting so much attention! And now that that's broken, we can't trace it! You are now all on high alert, do you hear me!" The Heroes nodded. Someone was spying on them, but who?

Their thoughts were interrupted when a yell could be heard. "Oi! Eunwol! You guys! You all left me behiiiiind! What's with the cosplay again!?"

Hawkeye was reunited with his group of ...friends? Was that what he saw them as now? He didn't know. Well, at least he had gotten valuable information. And that dog by Evan's side was most certainly not a dog. A dragon, no less. He adjusted his blazer, closing the computer. The chip was an expensive device, too bad Aran destroyed it. He would have to find another way to get more information. The video was saved. Though…

He quickly set up a notification. Just in case the cat wiped his memories, he could restore them again. And a note to himself as well. The wonders of technology that was rarely seen in the world they were from then.

Elsewhere, the Troublemaker thrashed around as it regenerated its health. The man patted the Troublemaker on the head. He had gotten his information as well. Though, he didn't expect someone else to beat him to the punch. The boy was quite clever. He would need him on his side in order to take out the nosy little group. Though, now that he knew that people from the other side was here as well, perhaps he should quicken up the process.

No matter. They would not stop his actions or movement. And for the fellow that barely escaped through his summoning…

The man chuckled. How amusing, watching them enjoy school life. How irresponsible, as compared to the tales he knew of them. This would be very amusing indeed.


End file.
